The biggest UFC star is getting back inside the octagon for a rematch against Dustin Poirier, this time at the lightweight division. Both have had encounters in the featherweight division where Conor Mcgregor had the better of the fight. He finished Dustin Poirier inside the first round.
Who else can't wait for the first face-off of the week? 😤
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Conor Mcgregor eventually went on to beat Jose Aldo to win the featherweight champion. Everyone would agree that Mcgregor is the biggest star the UFC has gotten, just looking at his PPV numbers, it is not even close. Whether he tasted a defeat against Diaz and Khabib, people still want to watch him fight.
Meanwhile, Dustin Poirier beat a lot of former champions in order to get a title shot. He thought that moving up would be a smart move and he was right. He had a lot of success beating big names like Eddie Alvarez, Justin Gaethje, Anthony Pettis, and Max Holloway (2nd). He won the interim belt but fell short for the undisputed against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Mcgregor and Poirier share the same opponent for their last loss which is the current lightweight champion, Khabib Nurmagomedov. There is nothing to be ashamed of to lose someone as good as Khabib. He is undefeated for a reason.
In terms of the stylistic match-up, both love to strike rather than grapple. Their boxing is decent for an MMA fighter and they are both south-paw. One of the reasons Mcgregor wanted to fight Poirier is because it can help him prepare for a potential boxing fight with Manny Pacquiao who is also a southpaw.
The fight will likely be different from their first encounter since both fighters have evolved and improved their game. Although there won’t be a title on the line, the fight will still be considered a big lightweight fight since Khabib decided to retire, they are the clear best contenders in the division.
One could also argue that Dustin Poirier just got his emotions the better of him in their first fight which he admitted as well in his past interviews. Mcgregor is known to play mind games that could ruin his opponent’s game plan. Poirier has learned from it and will likely stay composed and pick his shots.
Conor Mcgregor looked great in his fight against Cerrone. No one has destroyed Cerrone in such a few seconds as Mcgregor did. He was also creative in doing the shoulder strike that broke Cerrone’s face easily.
The season resumes! What version of @TheNotoriousMMA are you expecting on Saturday? 🇮🇪
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— UFC (@ufc) January 18, 2021
Another motivator for both of the fighters is that Khabib will be watching the fight. Khabib said that if any fighter will look impressive he might think about returning to the Octagon once more, but if only they show something that is worth returning for the Dagestan fighter.
It might be obvious that the UFC is hoping Mcgregor wins an impressive fashion as he is their cash-cow. In terms of money, no fight will be bigger than Khabib vs Mcgregor 2. Will Poirier give an upset and prove to the world that he is the better fighter? Either way, both fighters never give a boring fight so fans expect fireworks.
