Dustin Poirier proved he was physically — and mentally — ready to defeat Conor McGregor this time.
Al Iaquinta was wrong after all. In October, before the Dustin Poirier-Conor McGregor rematch was officially finalized, Iaquinta told me he thought Poirier had already lost the fight. „What is that guy doing?“ Iaquinta said. „What is he, Conor’s fan? It’s so cringy. Conor’s like, ‚I’ll fly you over, and I’ll donate my money to your charity.‘ I’d be like, ‚Bro, I’ll fly my f—ing self over and when I beat the f— out of you, I’ll donate my own money. What is this? Kumbaya? Like what the hell. Are you kidding? He’s lost the fight already. „There’s not a doubt in my mind Dustin’s losing that fight. He’s already [conceded] in everything. He’s like, ‚Thank you for the fight. We’ll fight in Ireland or wherever, and thank you, we’ll fight for charity, it’ll be great.‘ It’s like, dude, get out of here. This is a fight. What? Are you freakin‘ kidding me? You’re gonna thank the guy? You think Conor is really gonna — this is for him, this is not for you, Dustin. Relax, bro.“ When he said that, some said it was harsh. I’ll admit, I, too, thought Poirier was falling for McGregor’s mind games. I thought McGregor was disarming him and luring him into a false sense of security. In the end, though, Poirier was right where he needed to be. Both mentally and physically. Poirier has made a living off the motto „25 minutes to make the world right again.“ Saturday night, after a career filled with ups and downs, he needed less than 10. Poirier told me in June that the McGregor loss in 2014 changed his career for the better. It was impossible to know that for sure until they fought again. Now we know. He’s one of the best fighters on the planet. Where does he go from here? A fight against Michael Chandler for the interim title would make a ton of sense, right? If not, how about Charles Oliveira? Either way, the man deserves a big fight next. That’s obvious. If Khabib Nurmagomedov is really done, Poirier should absolutely fight for the undisputed title next. What’s not so obvious is what this all means for McGregor. The loss is a massive one. There’s no doubt about that. He had big plans for 2021, in and out of the Octagon.
