Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier clash for the third time on Saturday, July 10, in the main event of UFC 264 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. McGregor won the first time around via first-round TKO at UFC 178 back in September 2014. Poirier evened things up at UFC 257, winning via second-round TKO in January.
Who wins the trilogy, and how does the victor get it done?
Former lightweight champion and now retired fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov would know better than anyone regarding the ins and outs of how McGregor and Poirier fight, considering he has defeated both. So, when Nurmagomedov looks at the upcoming contest, he expects it to have the same intangibles as UFC 257.
Nurmagomedov is of the notion that McGregor's best chance to win is to come out fast from the gates and do what he did in the first fight. If the former dual UFC champion cannot close things out within the opening five minutes, it's Poirier's fight to lose.
“Once again, same thing here — the first round is for Conor, he can take it,” Nurmagomedov predicted to UFC Russia. “If he doesn’t [win in the first round], then Dustin wins.”
At UFC 257, McGregor came out the aggressor and landed some heavy shots. But Poirier was able to absorb the punches and started attacking McGregor's lead leg with one vicious calf kick after another.
By the time the second round got underway, McGregor's leg was thrashed, and Poirier went to work. While continuing to attack the leg, Poirier started to go upstairs, which led to "The Diamond" putting McGregor away in the second round.
Nurmagomedov and McGregor fought in a highly anticipated battle at UFC 229 in October 2018. Once the Octagon was locked, Nurmagomedov dominated most of the contest to win via fourth-round submission (neck crank) to retain the 155-pound title. But the bitter rivals weren't done as both teams engaged in a near-riot which spilled into the crowd.
"The Eagle" and Poirier squared off at UFC 242, with Nurmagomedov winning via third-round submission to successfully defend his belt. However, after his submission win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 254, Nurmagomedov laid down his gloves inside the Octagon and announced his retirement. Even though UFC president Dana White tried his hardest to lure him back for one more fight, Nurmagomedov has remained steadfast and vowed never to return.