Connor McGregor will renew his rivalry with Dustin Poirier when they face off in a trilogy fight in the main event at UFC 264 in the T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in the lightweight division.
Both fighters have met each other twice in the past, with each of them winning one fight.
The third fight between both men promises to be a brawl, as even the staredown between the men saw MacGregor attempt to kick Poirier before being carried off the stage.
The winner of this tie gets to compete for the UFC lightweight title against champion Charles Oliveira in their next fight. McGregor won the first fight, with Poirier exacting revenge when they faced for a second time.
CONNOR MCGREGOR
The Irishman was up to his usual tricks and antics in the press conference as he tried to goad and mock his opponent, looking to gain a psychological edge before the fight even starts.
His last victory came via a first round knockout inside the first minute against Donald Cerrone in January 2020 at UFC 246. He lost his last fight at UFC 257 in the UFC Fight Island to Poirier via a second round knockout in the third minute of the fight.
McGregor has switched to a heavy boxing style since his 2018 loss by submission to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229.
The Irishman was previously known for his karate-like style of fighting, but since his defeat to Nurmagomedov and time off from the championship, he has switched styles and won one of his two fights since.
He was dropped by a kick in his last fight against Poirier and will definitely be looking to guard himself against such this time around.
DUSTIN POIRIER
The American was a picture of cool, calm and collected as he smiled at all of his opponent’s attempts to rile him up during the press conference and stare down.
Like McGregor, he has lost to Nurmagomedov, with the Russian the last man to emerge victorious against him back in 2019 after a third round submission ended their contest.
Poirier has gone on to win his next two fights against Dan Hooker at UFC on ESPN in 2020 by decision and a second round knockout of McGregor in January of this year.
Poirier’s victory over McGregor was aided greatly by his use of calf kicks to destabilise the Irishman in their fight, and McGregor could not find a way to defend himself against the calf kicks from his opponent before eventually succumbing to a knockout in the second round.
The American has only ever lost thrice in his UFC career against McGregor in 2014, Michael Johnson in 2016 and Nurmagomedov in 2019, showing his pedigree as a talented fighter since his UFC debut.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Both men have a history together after Poirier accused McGregor of making a bogus claim that he intended to make a donation to his charity organisation.
McGregor won their first fight in the Featherweight division back in 2014, his third win in the UFC at the time, inside the second minute of the first round by knockout.
Poirier won the second meeting between both men, returning the favour to McGregor with a second round knockout of the Irishman. The third match promises to be a rubber stamp of one man’s superiority over the other.
PUNTERS CORNER
A McGregor win has been given 2.15 odds, making him the underdog in the fight. A win for Poirier was awarded 1.74 odds, owing to the American’s dominant performance in their last fight.
Many ex, current MMA fighter and fans who like betting on MMA have tipped McGregor for the win in this fight.
In the co-main event, Stephen Thompson will take on Gilbert Burns on the night in a Welterweight clash. Punters interested in betting on MMA will have two great matchups to choose from.
