Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler co-main event revealed as Jamahal Hill faces Khalil Rountree Jr

Jamahal Hill will make a swift return to the cage as he takes on Khalil Rountree Jr at UFC 303, in the co-main event of Conor McGregor’s fight with Michael Chandler.

In the main event of UFC 300 on 13 April, Hill suffered a first-round knockout loss to Alex Pereira, failing to regain the light-heavyweight title.

Yet the American, 32, will be back in action as soon as 29 June, facing compatriot Khalil Rountree Jr in Las Vegas.

Hill won the 205lbs title by outpointing Glover Teixeira in January 2023 but vacated the belt last summer, after reportedly sustaining an injury while playing basketball.

Some fans and pundits speculated that “Sweet Dreams” rushed his recovery by fighting Pereira this month, and Hill fell victim to a signature left hook from the Brazilian at the T-Mobile Arena, where he will face Rountree.

Rountree, 34, is riding a five-fight win streak including four knockouts, with some fans suggesting that Hill is again rushing into a bout.

“I took no damage,” Hill said on his YouTube channel last week, reflecting on his loss to Pereira. “Most of the [impact] was me falling down. I remember everything. I remember looking up, seeing his legs. I remember him coming in, [me] trying to block, trying to reach for the underhook.

“He was able to land some shots and kind of throw my equilibrium off on the other side, but I was coherent the whole time throughout, for the most part. So, I take this on. We moving forward.”

In the main event of UFC 303, McGregor will return after a three-year absence from the Octagon. The Irishman, 35, will face Michael Chandler at welterweight, 16 months after the fight was first announced.

In his last fight, in July 2021, McGregor suffered a broken leg in a second straight loss to Dustin Poirier. Six months earlier, Poirier knocked out the former dual-weight champion.

American Chandler, 38, also lost to Poirier last time out, suffering a submission defeat in November 2022.