"I really like Chandler vs. Conor after Chandler's last fight. There's plenty of fights to make. I don't know if that's the one. We'll see what the landscape looks like when Conor gets back."

Of course, Chandler's last fight was at UFC 274 last month ... when Iron Mike knocked out Tony Ferguson with a front kick 17 seconds into the 2nd round. It was one of the most brutal KOs ever.

Conor hasn't fought since UFC 264 in July 2021 ... when he gruesomely broke his leg while fighting Dustin Poirier.

"I'm just saying after his last [Octagon] interview, his last fight, Conor's ranked number 8. [Michael's] ranked number 5. It makes a lot of sense right now," Dana said.

As for a timeline for McGregor's return, Dana says he's getting closer, day by day.

"I think he's getting better. He's starting to ramp up his training, and I'm hoping the end of this year, early next year."

We also talked to the UFC boss (and future UFC Hall of Famer, Valentina Shevchenko) about UFC 275 ... where Valentina is fighting 19-1 Taila Santos in the co-main event.

Shevchenko hasn't lost in 5.5 years ... and Dana says she's arguably the greatest female fighter of all time.

If Valentina wins (she's a huge favorite), White says he's open to making Shevchenko-Nunes 3 (that loss in 2017 was to Amanda).

As for the main event ... 42-year-old light heavyweight champ Glover Teixeira is fighting 29-year-old rising star Jiri Prochazka.

The card also features a rematch of a fight many people believe to be the greatest women's MMA scrap ever ... Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Weili Zhang.

Their first fight was March 2020 ... a knockdown, drag-out, 5-round war which Weili ultimately won by split decision.

But, many fans felt Joanna should've been the victor.

That was the last time Jedrzejczyk stepped foot in the Octagon.