The outcome of Dustin Poirier vs Conor McGregor was something that we did not expect, no one would have thought that McGregor will be knocked out cold in the second round. For those who haven’t watched the full fight, you can watch using the link below.
The fight was all action from the get go, McGregor gave out the aggressive while Poirier was a bit more cautious. McGregor showed great improvements in his already high level boxing. Poirier invested more in the leg kicks to slow McGregor down, he eventually timed McGregor and successfully scored a takedown.
McGregor was able to get back up and managed to hit his famous shoulder strike in a clinch. Both had great exchanges in the clinch and it was pretty even. After breaking the clinch, Poirier still went back with the leg kicks, while McGregor landed heavy shots that would have knocked out other contenders.
One could assume that McGregor was looking for the finish in the early rounds while Poirier was in it for the long run. Poirier invested in the leg kicks and takedowns to mix up his offense while McGregor showed accurate striking especially his counterpunching abilities.
In the second round, Poirier opened up with another leg kick that put McGregor off a bit. It was then McGregor decided to throw his own kicks but it may have a little too late. McGregor was so in love with his boxing that he does not mix up most of his weapons anymore.
It is worth noting that in the build-up of the fight, had McGegor won it was supposed to set up a boxing fight with Manny Pacquiao.
McGregor underestimated Poirier’s leg kick to which he paid in the end. Once Poirier landed his own combination that stunned McGregor, it was easier to finish since McGregor had no mobility left. The target was easy to hit and Poirier is one of the best finishers in the division, so it was a matter of time.
The fight showed that leg kicks are a weakness to McGregor’s wide stance since McGregor plants his lead foot. It is easier to land and just back away. The question will be will it work the second time or will McGregor change his stance on the trilogy fight. McGregor has shown to change his gameplan after suffering a loss, what kind of adjustments will McGegor do in order to beat Poirier?
