MMichael Chandler is aiming to fight Justin Gaethje in his next fight.

After Chandler suffered a second-round TKO loss to Charles Oliveira at UFC 262 for the vacant lightweight title, many thought he should face Gaethje next time out.

“Gaethje should be next. There’s no doubt about it,” Chandler said this week on an Instagram live chat (via MMAFighting). “There is no secret [Makhachev] and Gaethje both share the same management, so obviously that management would want to say, ‘Hey, throw Islam on the trail. Throw Islam on the Chandler trail so that it takes the heat off of Gaethje.’

“But Justin Gaethje: Come on, bro. You call yourself a fighter, and you are — you’re one of the most exciting guys in mixed martial arts,” Chandler continued. “Be prepared to make a highlight or be made a highlight, because that’s what I am. That’s what I’m ready to do.”

Although Michael Chandler wants the fight against Gaethje, it has been hard to make the former Bellator champ reveals. According to “Iron”, he says “The Highlight” has turned him down a couple of times already. Yet, he says the fight makes sense rankings wise and it’s the scrap he wants.

“I’ll tell you what, I’ve said Justin Gaethje’s name no less than 100 times since I’ve signed with the organization,” Chandler said. “He’s been asked to fight me three or four different times. Every time he’s declined. He and I are ranked two spots away from each other. He has not fought since last October. He needs to get a fight in if he thinks he’s going to fight for the title. For some reason him and his camp have no interest in fighting me.

“So that’s the fight I want, that’s the fight I think it should be. Two of the best guys fighting,” Chandler added. “It’s also a fight that I know the fans want to see. I know that’s a fight you guys want to see, so that’s my hope, that’s my thought. And I don’t really get why we haven’t heard anything yet.”

Would you like to see Michael Chandler vs. Justin Gaethje?