Dustin Poirier's coach explains why Conor McGregor would have lost to 'The Diamond' even if he hadn't broken his leg at UFC 264
Dustin Poirier’s coach Mike Brown has explained why Conor McGregor would have lost to ‘The Diamond’ even if he hadn’t broken his leg at UFC 264.
The veteran ATT (American Top Team) coach recently took to Instagram to share the following post:
Mike Brown’s post featured a photo from the UFC 264 fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier. The statement attached to the post reads:
“Super proud of this man and all that he has accomplished. I don’t believe over the past 4 years anyone has had a tougher schedule or has had a more impressive resume than @dustinpoirier . His incredible run includes wins over Conor Mcgregor (2x), Dan Hooker, Max Holloway, Eddie Alverez , Justin Gaethje, Anthony Pettis, and Jim Miller. His only loss during this time period was to the now retired Khabib Numagomedov. Saturday night was another glimpse of what Dustin is capable of. This was another one-sided dominant performance over a former world champion.”
“For those people who believe that if Mcgregor’s leg wasn’t broken, he would have had a chance to make some sort of comeback, you are mistaken and this is far off from what history tells us. The chances of Conor rallying a comeback after losing a dominant (10-8) 1st round are slim. Conor has never been the guy known for his conditioning, in fact he is known as a guy who has a tendency to fade late, as he did in both Diaz fights and the Mayweather fight. If you look at Dustin’s past fights you will realize he is the guy who truly gets stronger as the fight grows and a guy who uses his heart to thrive in bloody wars. Broken leg or not, halfway through the first round it was clear who was going to get their hand raised, @dustinpoirier. #americantopteam”
In a nutshell, Mike Brown suggested that Conor McGregor generally fades as a fight progresses, while Dustin Poirier thrives in long and grueling fights.
Brown indicated that considering both fighters’ past performances, it was evident that Poirier was well on his way to victory after a dominant first round against McGregor at UFC 264.
Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier 4 could be on the cards once ‘The Notorious’ returns from his injury
Mike Brown’s Instagram post has elicited mixed reactions from the MMA community. While some fans support Brown’s hypothesis, others pointed out that it’d be unfair to assume that McGregor wouldn’t have had a puncher’s chance or perhaps even staged a strategic comeback in the following rounds.
The UFC 264 fight’s official verdict was a first-round TKO win for Dustin Poirier. Conor McGregor suffered a lower tibia injury towards the end of round one and was unable to continue fighting. The TKO win came courtesy of a doctor's stoppage between rounds one and two.
Needless to say, Conor McGregor and many others in the combat sports world have been lobbying for a fourth fight between him and Dustin Poirier ever since.
UFC president Dana White, on his part, has noted that he’s open to the idea of a possible fourth fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier.
McGregor is likely to make his comeback to the octagon in early 2022. Meanwhile, Poirier is expected to fight UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira for the title later this year.