Welcome to a collection of profound insights and inspirational words from the illustrious mixed martial artist, Michael Chandler. With a career marked by resilience, dedication, and remarkable achievements, Chandler has not only made a significant impact in the world of MMA but has also imparted wisdom that extends far beyond the confines of the octagon. Through his victories, defeats, and unwavering determination, Chandler has shared invaluable lessons on perseverance, mindset, and the pursuit of excellence.
As a former Bellator Lightweight World Champion and a highly respected figure in the MMA community, Michael Chandler’s journey is a testament to the power of hard work and belief in oneself. Whether inside the cage or in the realm of personal development, his words resonate with authenticity and insight, offering guidance to those striving for success in any endeavor. From overcoming obstacles to embracing challenges, Chandler’s quotes encapsulate the essence of what it means to push beyond one’s limits and strive for greatness.
Below, you’ll find a compilation of Michael Chandler’s most compelling quotes. Feel free to draw inspiration, reflect on his words, or use them to fuel your own journey towards achieving your goals and aspirations. Let Chandler’s wisdom serve as a beacon of motivation as you navigate the challenges and triumphs of life.
Some guys, when they enjoy some success in this sport, they get complacent. Not me. It makes me work and train that much harder, helps to bring out the warrior in me. Michael Chandler
I’m a force to be reckoned with. Michael Chandler
I don’t focus on how I’m gonna get the finish or how I would like to get the finish. I focus on just my game plan that I’ve gone over with myself, my coaches. If the finish comes it comes. Michael Chandler
I’m not who I am without the organization of Bellator. Michael Chandler
For me, getting up is an inside job, but it has been hard stepping in the cage with guys who I’ve had to lose against and not a lot to gain. Michael Chandler
Henri Hooft is the greatest striking coach on planet. He’s phenomenal leader – he makes me believe in me more than I will ever believe in me. Michael Chandler
For me, I want to make sure every single day I wake up and give thanks for everything that I’ve been given in life. Michael Chandler
Nothing bad can happen if you train your butt off and make the right decisions and surround yourself with the right people. Michael Chandler
The belt will grow dust and sit on the mantelpiece, but it’s not about the belt. It’s about how I can be as a father, as a human being that matters to me. Michael Chandler
Bellator wouldn’t be who they are without my performances and Michael Chandler wouldn’t be who he is without Bellator promoting him and us having a phenomenal symbiotic relationship. Michael Chandler
Training in Las Vegas at Xtreme Couture was awesome and I was there for almost two years. Michael Chandler
I’m always training to be quite honest, but there are those moments when you’re a little more out of shape than you should be. Michael Chandler
I love collegiate wrestling but the thought of training for international stuff just didn’t really appeal to me. Michael Chandler
Derek Campos is really tough. Michael Chandler
I pretty much just train… and go to church on Sundays. Michael Chandler
When you’re wrestling, it’s such an amazing sport. I love it. I loved that I came from that background. Michael Chandler
I’m just getting better every single day and I want to be the best in the world. Michael Chandler
I talk to my god every day and he’s completely fine with me beating the hell out of people. Michael Chandler
I had so much growing up and I’m so thankful for all the people who invested in my life. Michael Chandler
My wrestling’s always better than most people’s. Michael Chandler
Benson is a champion. I’d be lying to you if I said I wasn’t scared to death inside this cage, stepping into the cage with that monster. Michael Chandler
For as long as I can remember, our family has been huge Cardinals fans. My grandpa is a personal friend of Whitey Herzog’s; they were neighbors for decades. Our love and support of the Cardinals definitely runs deep. Michael Chandler
Henri Hooft has made my hands and feet deadly weapons. Michael Chandler
Life throws you curveballs and there are things that happen – you don’t understand why they happened at the time. But then you step back and understand you’re a better fighter and competitor because of the things that happened. Michael Chandler
It’s a fast-paced somewhat violent sport, but it’s very much entertaining. And the greatest thing about mixed martial arts is that it transcends a lot of demographics. Michael Chandler
I want to build a brand that inspires as many people as I possibly can. Michael Chandler
I train my butt off every single day. Michael Chandler
Everyone who has kids that you talk to tells you, ‘Wait until you have kids. It’s going to change you.’ You’re like, ‘Nah, come on. How can it change you that much?’ But it changes you so much. Michael Chandler
Benson Henderson is a guy that I fought before. He has two arms and two legs. He has certain patterns, mannerisms and tendencies that I know I can go out there and exploit. Michael Chandler
I was never an upper body wrestler. I am a shooter. Michael Chandler
I think overall body awareness and knowing exactly where I need to be makes a big difference. Knowing how much weight to put on each foot or where I need to put my hands are things I’m very good at. Obviously with the wrestling background those are things that come naturally. Michael Chandler
I really have a heart for children who suffer from cancer. I can’t imagine having to go through that at such a young age. Michael Chandler
I didn’t have to fight. I chose to fight. I believe God put me on this Earth to be able to do this and do it at a high level. Michael Chandler
I love Scott Coker and I love Bellator and I love what we have built together and it’s a little uneasy to think that I will no longer be under contract with Bellator after I knock out Benson Henderson and get my hand raised. Michael Chandler
I do have some unfinished business with Josh Thomson. I think that’s a fight fans want to see, it’s a fight Bellator wants, it’s a fight I want. Michael Chandler
It’s damage to a nerve. It pretty much shut down the whole lower part of my left leg. I wasn’t able to step anymore. It’s called foot drop – basically, you can’t lift your foot. Michael Chandler
I never focus on my opponent – I focus more on myself: knowing what my strengths are, where I can take the fight, how I can win the fight, and the intensity that I’m going to bring to a fight. Michael Chandler
Obviously, beating Alvarez was the first step to getting my name out there. Now people now know who I am and see, at least in some part, that I’m the real deal. Michael Chandler
Finishing a guy like Benson Henderson, who hasn’t been finished since for six years, the guy doesn’t get finished and I finished it with a switch-step switch to Southpaw, knocked him out with my left hand. Michael Chandler
You got to surround yourself with the strongest in the world, the strongest training partners and the best people. That’s what I do. Michael Chandler
I’m happy with the life I’m making for my wife and son. That’s the most important thing. Michael Chandler
Nothing has really made me upset aside from the baseless, false accusations of PED use. Michael Chandler
At first I thought, beer’s nasty. Then I found IPAs. They’re delicious. Michael Chandler
On my way to winning the title, it was great for me, but once I won the title, it was tough for me to get fights. Michael Chandler
I had my first fight in August of 2009 and haven’t looked back since. Michael Chandler
I knew I wanted to fight. It’s a great way to continue competing and not to mention actually make money. You can make a career out of it. Michael Chandler
The greatest thing about fighting a guy like Dave Rickels: He always comes to fight. Michael Chandler
Brandon Girtz is a tough man who can really throw the leather, but I’m on a different level. Michael Chandler
You don’t hope to go up and hit a single. You go up and hope to hit a home run. Michael Chandler
Financial freedom is very important to me because when that kind of stuff is taken care of, I can just focus on fighting. Michael Chandler
You see it from my area, from any area, really, so many who want to be great and have the drive, but don’t have the resources. I’m very blessed that I have a family that was financially stable enough to get me to tournaments and camps and to practices so I could wrestle year-round. Michael Chandler
I actually have a tattoo on the left side of my chest that says ‘Blessed.’ It represents how blessed I’ve been in my life and how thankful I am for all that I have. Michael Chandler
I’m a guy who’s been around this sport on the outside looking in, seeing, watching, scheming, plotting and planning his next big move. Michael Chandler
Benson Henderson is a professional; he’s a champion. He knows how to handle himself in the cage and he knows how to win fights. Michael Chandler
Life is too short and too sweet to complain about the silly things. Michael Chandler
My goal is to win and to finish fights quickly. Michael Chandler
It’s OK to have a little bit of pride in yourself. Michael Chandler
It is not that hard to go out there and put on the performance of your life and beat any guy in the lightweight division on any given night. Michael Chandler
There are always a couple of ways you envision fights going; you always envision a win and a great finish. Michael Chandler
I’m just blessed that fighting was an option. Now I’m doing it and I love it. I thank God every day that I’m in the sport. Michael Chandler
I do love the outdoor. Love love the outdoors, fishing and hunting and that kind of thing. Michael Chandler
When I first started fighting, it was just me. But things changed when I married, knowing that I had another person counting on me. Michael Chandler
Somebody with a huge brand like Bellator under an even huger brand like Viacom, to have them put their faith in me, to put me in so many things, to put me in commercials, send me to all these events, and just to continue to put me in the cage with great talent, it’s great. Michael Chandler
I’m a nasty human being when I step into that cage, but before that I could care less. Michael Chandler
If I had the opportunity to fight Khabib, or anyone ranked No. 1 – I’ve played that in my head a million times. Michael Chandler
Letting emotion get into it isn’t part of my game. Letting animosity or a rivalry come into it, that’s all for the show. Michael Chandler
I eat about every three to four hours. Michael Chandler
There’s still times I wish I could throw on the black and gold singlet and go out there in the Hearnes Center and wrestle for the Missouri Tigers. I miss that and I miss the stuff about college wrestling. Michael Chandler
I look after two people – my wife and my son. Michael Chandler
There are a lot of people who don’t believe I deserve to be recognized as one of the top-10 best and I don’t necessarily disagree with them. Michael Chandler
It really has been just take it one day a time, one fight at a time, one training camp at a time, one year at a time. Michael Chandler
Once I’m in training camp, there’s no beer, there’s no soda, there’s no bad food. There’s no anything. It’s eat, sleep and breathe training. Michael Chandler
If fighting ever got in the way of my marriage, you’d see me sacrifice my career. Michael Chandler
The people who know me, the fans who’ve watched my fights, they know what I’m about. They know that I’m going to give 100 percent of everything I have each and every time I get into the octagon. Michael Chandler
I built my name on fighting so hard – I’ll always do that – but I’m also trying to become more of a veteran, to be be calm and calculated and not always trying to bowl people over. Michael Chandler
I’m going to stash up my cash and invest in real estate. I want to be set up for the end of fighting. Michael Chandler
I don’t want to just be a great fighter, but also a great man. Michael Chandler
There are always a ton of different people to learn from and people that are pushing me to get better. Michael Chandler
I’ve been blessed so much in my own life and I want to spread that blessing to others who need it. Michael Chandler
I got a wife and a son I have to fight for. Michael Chandler
Bellator has taken care of me, and I’ve taken care of them. It’s been the perfect storm of a symbiotic relationship – them having an asset they were not willing to lose, and me being in a situation where the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Michael Chandler
I like Scott Coker a lot. He built Strikeforce, turned it into what it was and he has a great reputation with fighters and other promoters. Michael Chandler
If I could do this until I was 60, I would. This is a great life. All I do is train, all I do is work out, and prolong my life by the training that I’m doing, the things I have to do as professional athlete. Michael Chandler
I’ve had the belt and it’s great. But at the end of the day it’s just 12 pounds of leather and gold. Michael Chandler
Not since 2011, when I stepped into the cage and fought Eddie Alvarez for the first time and was the extreme underdog – I’ve never quite had that feeling of a 10 since then. Michael Chandler
I just try to keep the main thing the main thing: getting my butt in the gym. Michael Chandler
America was built on hard work and not complaining about stupid junk. Michael Chandler
I just think that with my wrestling background there’s not going to be any doubt in my mind that if I have to go through a three round war that in the third round I’m gonna be more fresh, more tenacious, I’m gonna want that win more than anybody else I’m going to have to fight. Michael Chandler
Growing up as a wrestler, especially in practice, I think you get used to competing without much of a crowd around. Michael Chandler
God has always opened up doors at the right time. He’s closed doors at the right time. Michael Chandler
I’m trying to be the best lightweight fighter in the world. That’s my main objective. I just have to keep my head up, keep training and enjoy this awesome ride that I’m on. Michael Chandler
When people talk about the lightweight division they will probably mention my name a little bit. Whether they believe I don’t deserve to be up there or I do, they are at least going to mention me. Michael Chandler
If it’s an emotional chick-flick type of movie, chances are, I’m going to end up crying. I’m not afraid to admit that, because I think emotion is very healthy. Michael Chandler
Obviously, as a young, young, hungry fighter, I’d like to be fighting three or four times a year. Michael Chandler
I’ve had a phenomenal life. I have a phenomenal God that I serve. I have a phenomenal wife. Michael Chandler
I didn’t even drink in college. Michael Chandler
I’ve taken fights on short notice while injured to help save shows, and in return I’ve been taken care of. Michael Chandler
My body is durable, my body is able to withstand a lot of practices, a lot of punishment. Michael Chandler
No matter where I’ve been or where I go, a piece of Missouri is always with me because this is where I’m from and where I grew up. Michael Chandler
I just turned 34 and feel like the best striker I’ve ever been. Michael Chandler