Michael Chandler breaks his silence after falling to Paddy Pimblett at UFC 314: ‘Never out of the fight’

Michael Chandler left the octagon before Bruce Buffer even had time to announce the result in his fight against Paddy Pimblett at UFC 314 but he finally broke his silence with a brief statement released on social media on Monday.

The one-time UFC title challenger suffered a third-round stoppage loss after Pimblett got him to the ground and unloaded a barrage of elbows and punches that forced the referee to end the fight. The loss dropped Chandler to 2-5 in the UFC with his defeat on Saturday serving as his third in a row overall.

While he didn’t directly address Pimblett or how the fight played out, Chandler reminded himself that there are still more important things out there to him than what happens in the UFC.

“Never out of the fight,” Chandler wrote on Twitter. “This picture sums it all up. As long as I’ve got these heartbeats and hands to hold, I’ve already won.”

The photo that accompanied Chandler’s post was from his wife Brie that showed him holding hands with his son, who was in attendance for the fights this past Saturday night. Chandler also returned home to spend time with his new daughter, who was born not long before he set foot in the octagon to do battle with Pimblett at UFC 314.

Now a father of three, Chandler always prioritized his family above anything else and that pretty much defines his takeaway after a tough night at the office when it comes to his job in the UFC.

As far as his career goes, Chandler obviously hasn’t addressed what comes next now that he’s looking at a long climb back up the ladder following the loss to Pimblett.

Despite the loss, UFC CEO Dana White still praised Chandler for his toughness and willingness to always put on entertaining fights while calling him the UFC’s Arturo Gatti — a boxer famous for putting on some of the greatest slugfests in history.