It looks like Conor McGregor isn’t as retired as we all thought after all!
Saturday Night on January 23, 2021 at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX will be the sight to see “The Notorious” go face-to-face against Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier (26-6 MMA, 1NC, 18-5, 1NC UFC) McGregor (22-4 MMA, 10-2 UFC) who is slated to fight Manny Pacquiao in a boxing match later next year following this upcoming bout.
This will be the second bout between the two, where they last fought at featherweight back on September 27, 2014 where McGregor wasted no time in knocking out the Lafayette, Louisiana native in the very first round at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. At exactly 411 miles away from his hometown, Poirier has more than enough home-field advantage where the Dallas Cowboys play that can help him in this fight against a man coming off a win against Muay Thai specialist Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. McGregor defeated Cerrone earlier in January this year at UFC 246 in Vegas.
Poirier, on the other hand, is coming off a victory of his own over Dan Hooker by unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night: Vegas 4 back this summer in June. One question remains: What weight class will these two combatants face off in?
Thanks to an icy ultimatum from UFC President Dana White to McGregor that told him to take the fight, otherwise he should remain a retiree. The “take it or leave it” offer worked as having Cowboys owner Jerry Jones as a reputable ally will make this event a more memorable one for the both of them.
Another question remains: If either fighter wins, will they secure a rematch against lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov? Both fighters suffered rear naked choke defeats in the third and fourth round respectively. With over three months before the fight, will The Irishman make it 2-0 against Poirier or will “The Diamond” avenge his loss that happened over six years ago?