American underdog Dustin Poirier shook up the world of mixed martial arts Sunday, beating up the legs of Irish superstar Conor McGregor before knocking him out at UFC 257 in Abu Dhabi.
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“I’m happy but I’m not surprised. I put in the work,” Poirier after the referee stepped in after 2min 32sec of the second round to save McGregor from further damage after he was dropped by a fierce combination of punches.
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The 32-year-old Poirier was ranked second in the flyweight division going into the fight, but still rated a heavy underdog by bookmakers to beat his fourth-ranked opponent, arguably the most famous fighter the sport has seen.
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The controversial McGregor, known as “Notorious”, was returning to the octagon for the first time in a year and hoping for a repeat of the pair’s first contest in 2014 which he won by TKO after just 109 seconds.
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But Poirier, who now has a UFC record of 27-6, used low calf kicks in an effort to put McGregor (22-5) off his usual ferocious stand-up game - and it worked.
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“First off I want to say Conor took this result professionally. We’re 1-1 and maybe we’re going to have to do it again,” said Poirier, hinting at the prospect of a trilogy fight.
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“I’m happy with the place I am in. I’m happy with the face I see in the mirror. The goal was to be technical and to pick my shots, not brawl at all. I had him hurt and I went a little crazy.”
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McGregor likes to call himself “Mystic Mac” and had spent the week leading into the fight predicting he would end it inside 60 seconds.
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But it was a different Poirier to the one who had looked overmatched when the pair previously met at UFC 178 at the lighter featherweight.
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The lightweight fighters, both 32, were each making a case for a title bout. McGregor looked strong and aggressive in the first round, but Poirier overwhelmed him in the second with leg kicks and a barrage of punches that crumpled McGregor to the ground.
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McGregor said immediately after the fight that he'd like to compete more often in 2021, but a big-money rematch with champion Khabib Nurmagomedov seems less likely than ever, and an immediate shot at the vacant title also seems remote. Poirier's win should move him to the front of the line, and Michael Chandler, a former Bellator lightweight champion, made his case by winning his UFC debut in the co-main event via first-round knockout over contender Dan Hooker.
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Khabib took a dig at Conor McGregor after his loss to Poirier, hiniting that he is finished after a series of exhibition fights. "This is what happened, when you change your team, leave the sparring partners who made you a champion and sparring with little kids, far away from reality," he tweeted.
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McGregor reportedly left the Yas Island arena on crutches after his legs took a pummelling from Poirier and it is difficult to say where his career will go from here.
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