Conor McGregor reveals why he wants to fight Al Iaquinta
Conor McGregor would love to face Al Iaquinta in UFC at some point down the line. Al Iaquinta has fought a number of UFC welterweights and lightweights in his career, including the champ Khabib Nurmagomedov with the 155-pound belt on the line. However, he has never faced Conor McGregor inside the octagon. The Irishman wants to change that, sooner or later.
Speaking to ESPN's Ariel Helwani ahead of his UFC 257 fight against Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor revealed that he likes Al Iaquinta and wants to have a fight with him sometime. In fact, he would be more than happy to fight anyone and everyone in the division and beyond.
"I'd like to fight Al Iaquinta at some stage. I don't know (why), I'd just like to fight him. I actually like Al, I think he's a funny guy. He's a real estate agent and all, I think that's funnier in itself... I'd like to fight them all to be honest. I don't care This is the thing with me and all these other guys. Wins and losses mean nothing to me. If you're scheduled to fight a man, and you've gone through buildup and there's history and all of this - a fight is a fight, and a fight must take place."
The last comments were a jibe at the canceled bout between Khabib Nurmagomedov and Tony Ferguson, which was booked five times and has been canceled every single time so far. With Khabib retiring, it seemed like the fight would never happen. However, recent developments have changed the scenario.
Dana White announced during last night's UFC Fight Island 7 that Khabib Nurmagomedov might consider coming back if any of the lightweight fights at UFC 257 can impress him. If they are special enough, Khabib might return to defend his title against one of the winners. Dana White has already said that the winner of Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier will be in line for a title shot.
Al Iaquinta: Dustin Poirier has lost the fight against Conor McGregor already
Conor McGregor thinks highly of Al Iaquinta as a potential opponent, but 'Raging' is not a big fan of his current rival, Dustin Poirier. In fact, he finds the way Poirier handled himself in front of 'The Notorious' to be "ridiculous", he told Helwani in a previous interview.
"If the fight happens, 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."
Al Iaquinta was talking about the time Dustin Poirier readily agreed to the charity fight Conor McGregor offered to have, before Dana White intervened. Even though it is now an official UFC fight, Conor McGregor has still pledged to make a hefty donation to Poirier's charity, the Good Fight Foundation.