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- Dustin Poirier has hinted that he knows he beat Conor McGregor early in Saturday’s showdown.
- The American knocked out the Irishman in the second round after attacking his legs earlier in the fight.
- He told reporters at a post-event press conference that calf kicking was a premeditated strategy.
- Visit the Insider home page for more stories.
THE ISLAND OF FIGHT – Dustin Poirier knew Conor McGregor was in a “bad position early on” in Saturday’s fight as he is well aware of the pain of calf kicks at the end.
The No.2-ranked lightweight heading into UFC 257, Poirier cold-knocked McGregor on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi after relentless attacks on his legs leading up to blows to the head.
At the start of the second round, Poirier bombarded McGregor against the fence, beat him to the ground and forced a save as the Irishman lay on the canvas with blood dripping from his nose.
It took McGregor a few minutes to recover and even when he did, he walked out of the arena with a severe limp.
At the post-event press conference that Insider attended, Poirier told reporters his trainer Mike Brown made him understand the importance of kicking in the game with McGregor.
“We compromised his leg and he was in a bad position early on just from the repeated kicks,” said Poirier.
Poirier hinted that once the calf kick caught him, McGregor started checking the shot.
But, regardless, the defensive maneuvers were ineffective and he could tell he was causing McGregor considerable damage. “After the second kick I knew he was in pain.”
McGregor called the loss “heartbreaking” and said his leg was “completely dead [and] seriously compromised. “
Poirier said: “I just know from experience how much these things hurt. And I knew it was a five-round fight, so it would only get worse.”
We don’t know where Poirier is going from here. After back-to-back wins over Dan Hooker and McGregor, he’s done enough to justify another hit at the UFC lightweight championship.
However, a trilogy fight involving McGregor, with or without a title on the line, could also materialize.
Read more:
Floyd Mayweather, Jake Paul and Khabib Nurmagomedov line up to poke fun at Conor McGregor for his knockout loss
Conor McGregor said he would console himself with Irish coffee, pancakes and spending time with his family on a $ 4 million yacht
Michael Chandler becomes new UFC star as American scored savage knockout in company debut
Dustin Poirier just knocked out Conor McGregor in awesome Fight Island fight
Khabib Nurmagomedov gives another clear indication he’s retired forever and won’t fight in UFC again
Calvin Kattar hit with 6-month medical suspension after suffering one of the most brutal beatings in UFC history
UFC fighter fired after breaking the Fight Island bubble by giving his COVID passport to a stranger who ‘walked’ through 4 balconies to deliver a mystery bag
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