UFC has confirmed the involvement of Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor in the UFC. 257 event on Jan. 23rd, 2021. The underdog will face the former champ, and he has a chance to win this fight.
Dustin Poirier has lost against Conor McGregor once when they fought each other in September 2014. Nonetheless, Poirier has a chance to win the upcoming fight on Jan. 23rd, 2021. According to ESPN, McGregor has not officially signed in the contract yet, but the Irishman mentioned this fight on his Twitter. The fighter wrote.
“I accept, Jan 23rd is on! My goal is to see this fight take place in Cowboy stadium. Proper Style! Jerry Jones is a friend and the stadium can hold our crowd. I will be ready for Texas and Texas will be ready for my fans! Then Manny. #McGregorSportsandEntertainment.”
The world-famous Irishman believed that he would do the same thing with Poirier as he did it once in the 2014 fight. However, McGregor has to be more careful with Poirier than before. Two fighters met once in a featherweight’s cast fight. This time, they would compete as lightweight fighters.
McGregor has only three MMA fights in the last four years, while Poirier has 8 times in the ring. The native Louisianan only lost 1 battle in his last 8 appearances in the Octagon. He only received ed from Khabib Nurmagomedov. The legendary champion forced Poirier to tap out with a submissive movement. On the other hand, the American fighter knocked out several fighters. The list of his victims includes Anthony Pettis, Justin Gaethje, Alvarez, Max Holloway, Dan Hooker, and Jim Miller. Four of them were lightweight belt holders.
Poirier showed that in the last four years, he was a dominant figure inside the ring. McGregor also proved his class in the last four years, but the Irishman could suffer a defeat this time. His opponent repeatedly emphasized that he lost the fight in 2014 due to the horrible weight cut. The Louisianian fighter described that the cut was more tedious than the fight itself.
Anyway, it could not point out why Poirier can give the Irishman a nightmarish night of fighting.
McGregor is a striker, and he has powerful hand moves. Added to that, the Irish fighter understood how to summon deadly kicks. McGregor has a powerful left hook and strong kicks that can knock-out anyone. Therefore, Poirier definitely wants to avoid those things in the upcoming fight. Despite the drawback, Poirier has the advantage on the ground fight.
The main style of the American fighter is submission, and it explains why he has claimed 7 victories by submissive movements. His opponent, McGregor, was defeated by submissive 4 times including the loss against Khabib Nurmagomedov.
McGregor is an opportunistic grappler, and Poirier can advantage from that. Nevertheless, the Irishman is a left-handed striking specialist which is the disadvantage of Poirier. The American athlete accepted the defeat against McGregor in 2014 because of a left-handed strike, a power hook.
But Poirier has the mightiest advantage of the fight: cardio.
McGregor is a striker, and the worst nightmare for him is the stamina drawback which has been admitted by him. Poirier struggled with the same problem in his earlier phase of the career. Thanks to the American Top Team gym, the fighter reshaped himself and also his stamina. If Poirier can last the fight past the third round, he can have a big advantage to finish McGregor.
The Irishman can be confident, but he needs to be careful. Dustin Poirier is no longer an easy opponent. He is tougher, stronger, and healthier than his 2014 version.
via MMA Fightings and related sources