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Poirier, McGregor complete epic trilogy

ufc05 July 2021 07:22| © Backpage TXT
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Dustin Poirier © Getty Images

Lightweight MMA stars Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor will complete an epic trilogy of fights when they meet in the main event of UFC 264 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on the morning of Sunday 11 July 2021.

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This event will see the first full capacity crowd at Las Vegas for the Ultimate Fighting Championship since UFC 248 in March 2020.

Poirier (27-6, 1 NC) and McGregor (22-5) have met twice before: their first fight was a featherweight bout in September 2014 at UFC 178, where McGregor won by first-round technical knockout. They then ascended to lightweight for an eventual rematch in January 2021 at UFC 257, where Poirier prevailed via second-round knockout.

This third meeting of former lightweight champions will decide their rivalry once and for all, with McGregor confident that this time he will emerge victorious.

“I beat him in the original bout. I lost in the rematch. And then we've got trilogy, I've got a few little adjustments to make. I feel very, very confident. I'm very focused and driven. And I'll go in there and put on one hell of a performance and get it back on July 10th,” said ‘The Notorious’.

Poirier, meanwhile, is expecting McGregor to utilise the same calf kicks that were so effective for the American in the pair’s second match earlier this year.

“He felt how crippling those kicks and how painful those kicks are and how much it changes the dynamic of a fight that I think he’s going to try and use them against me now. I really do, and that’s what I started doing, I started trying to use them every chance I got after I was hurt with them,” said ‘The Diamond’.

The co-main event of the night sees Stephen Thompson (16-4-1) looking to mark himself out as the next natural challenger for welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, though he faces a tough opponent in Gilbert Burns (19-4).

“I’m glad the UFC is giving me someone ranked higher than me,” Thompson explained. “The last several fights have been guys ranked significantly behind me. They are putting me in the right direction [with this fight] and that is towards the title.”

The main card also sees Tai Tuivasa take on Greg Hardy in the heavyweight division; a women’s bantamweight bout between Irene Aldana and Yana Kunitskaya; as well as a bantamweight showdown between Sean O’Malley and Kris Moutinho.

South African MMA fans should also join SuperSport earlier for the preliminary card, which will open with a middleweight bout featuring Dricus du Plessis facing Trevin Giles.

The 27-year-old Pretoria native is a former EFC middleweight and welterweight champion and KSW welterweight champion, and impressed on his UFC debut last year by knocking out Markus Perez in the opening round of a match on ‘Fight Island’ in Abu Dhabi.

“I know what it feels like to be in the octagon, to be fighting in front of Dana White, to be on the biggest stage in the world. A dream come true for me to be able to fight on the biggest stage in the world,” said du Plessis.

UFC 264 – Main card

* Stream UFC 264 LIVE on SS Action (210) from midnight on Sunday, 11 July 2021 *

Main event: Lightweight: Dustin Poirier v Conor McGregor

Welterweight: Gilbert Burns v Stephen Thompson

Heavyweight: Tai Tuivasa v Greg Hardy

Women’s bantamweight: Irene Aldana v Yana Kunitskaya

Bantamweight: Sean O’Malley v Kris Moutinho

UFC 264 – Preliminary card

Welterweight: Carlos Condit v Max Griffin

Welterweight: Niko Price v Michel Pereira

Featherweight: Ryan Hall v Ilia Topuria

Middleweight: Dricus du Plessis (RSA) v Trevin Giles (Live from midnight)

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