Conor McGregor‘s 2020 fell well short of his expectations. He had planned to fight at least three times, with one of those being a rematch against Khabib Nurmagomedov for the UFC lightweight championship.
Instead, McGregor fought for a total of 40 seconds, which was how long he needed to beat the fading Donald Cerrone on Jan. 18. The coronavirus pandemic interrupted McGregor’s plans for the rest of the year, and he became so frustrated that he tweeted he was retiring — again.
So consider 2021 a mulligan for McGregor, who will look to get back on track in UFC 257, scheduled for Jan. 23. He’ll have his rematch, but it won’t be against Nurmagomedov, and it won’t be for a title. He’ll face Dustin Poirier, who fell in just 1 minute, 46 seconds via TKO against McGregor in 2014.
Poirier has won 10 fights since then, beating some of the best in the UFC, including Justin Gaethje, Max Holloway and Dan Hooker. McGregor went on to become the biggest star in UFC history, establishing himself as the first UFC fighter ever to hold two belts simultaneously.
So what will the rematch hold? This page will be continuously updated with news, features, social media posts and more, as McGregor vs. Poirier 2 is set to headline on “Fight Island.”
Khabib sees McGregor-Poirier winner on title track
Khabib Nurmagomedov said he believes the winner of the UFC 257 main event between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier on Jan. 23 will fight for the UFC lightweight belt. He did not, however, name an opponent for that potential title fight.
Nurmagomedov remains the lightweight champ despite retiring after beating Justin Gaethje on Oct. 24. He was asked during an interview with the Russian outlet Match TV if there’s a chance he’ll fight again in the UFC, and according to the transcript Match provided, he said: “I would not want that.”
Some originally thought Nurmagomedov was indicating that McGregor vs. Poirier would be for the title, assuming it was vacant. But Nurmagomedov’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, clarified that what the champ meant was he believes the winner of the Jan. 23 bout will fight for the title.
McGregor’s gesture puts gym owner in tears
Philip Mulpeter posted bad news recently on Instagram. The gym he owns, SBG Portarlington in County Laois, Ireland, would have to close its doors because of financial concerns brought upon by COVID-19 lockdowns in the country.
“We’ve had three lockdowns now, and I think after each lockdown it’s hard to get the same numbers back in,” Mulpeter told ESPN. “People lose the routine and just our numbers were dropping. Every time there was a new lockdown, we got deeper and deeper into debt. … Our landlord wasn’t giving us any break on the rent or anything like that. We had to decide to shut the doors for good.”
Then in stepped Conor McGregor.
See which of the two is ranked among ESPN’s P4P top 10
There was a time when Conor McGregor was considered one of the best fighters on the planet, with a future that could make him the GOAT.
But a lucrative sidetrack to box Floyd Mayweather Jr. derailed those plans on Aug. 26, 2017. Was it a temporary derailment? The answer might be revealed in 2021.
Meanwhile, Dustin Poirier has been busy and successful, beating some of the best in the world.
One of these two was ranked among the top 10 pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
Which one?
This is the most compelling fight to open 2021
The UFC begins 2021 with what should be a featherweight thriller: former champion Max Holloway taking on Calvin Kattar on Jan. 16, with the winner possibly earning a title opportunity. Four days later, the UFC could see a welterweight title challenger emerge.
But the fight everyone is looking forward to will be on Jan. 23, when Conor McGregor returns to face Dustin Poirier.
Real or not: If McGregor wins, Khabib rematch is next
Helwani: I definitely think the UFC will explore the possibility of Nurmagomedov vs. McGregor 2 next year, if McGregor beats Poirier Jan. 23. After all, we know that was the UFC’s plan/hope for 2020 before, well, you know the rest.
I mean, could you imagine if Nurmagomedov is going for 30-0 against McGregor? No joke, I think that could generate close to 3 million pay-per-view buys, which would make it the highest-selling PPV in UFC history. It would be massive, and the UFC would undoubtedly explore it. The UFC knows how big this is. But first, McGregor has to get by Poirier, which is no easy task. Poirier is a much more confident and better fighter than the one McGregor beat over six years ago.
McGregor’s journey: Success, controversy, star power
UFC president Dana White remembers the first time he heard the name Conor McGregor, a name that would forever change the promotion.
White was in Dublin to receive an award from Trinity College in 2013 when he invited UFC fans on Twitter to join him at a nearby pub after the ceremony. Drinks would be covered by the UFC president.
It was that night, Feb. 11, when he first heard a name that would become the most talked about in UFC history.
“The place was packed, full of people,” White said. “I was in there with the fans all night, and everybody kept talking about Conor McGregor.”
What they’re saying
John Kavanagh believes the result of Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor’s first fight will be hard to forget for Poirier. pic.twitter.com/X6fXJ7bQNp
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 27, 2020
Charles Oliveira vs. the winner of McGregor/Poirier for the 155 belt.#espnplus #UFC https://t.co/HqJ7550toD
— Charles Oliveira (@CharlesDoBronxs) December 24, 2020
Conor McGregor is looking to build on what he started in 2020 ?
(via @TheNotoriousMMA) pic.twitter.com/rHvwziRKCI
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 21, 2020
Belts. New divisions. New rivalries.
In the six years since their first meeting, Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor have chalked up serious resumes ? pic.twitter.com/san4UYPEeD
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) November 23, 2020
OFFICIAL: Your Poirier-McGregor 2 poster has landed ???
[ #InAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi ] pic.twitter.com/fbvMEO2RBE
— UFC (@ufc) December 23, 2020
Video highlights
2:11
Ariel Helwani and Marc Raimondi discuss if Dustin Poirier is the right opponent for Conor McGregor, as Helwani implores people not to sleep on Poirier.
1:19
Dustin Poirier explains how after his loss to Conor McGregor in 2014, he began to change his perspective on fighting and that made him happier overall in life.
1:36
Go back to August 2014 when Conor McGregor hyped up his fight vs. Dustin Poirier and proclaimed that he was going to take over the sport.
0:42
Doug Kezirian explains why Conor McGregor’s fans placing a wave of bets on him to beat Dustin Poirier is impacting the odds.
