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When interim title holder Dustin Poirier takes on lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in the main event of Abu Dhabi's UFC 242 card on Saturday, he will become a big underdog against the undefeated 155-pound king. Nurmagomedov (27-0) certainly demands respect from his opponents because of his mauling style built on the basis of his elite wrestling base, but Poirier (25-5, 1 NC) enters the fight as the Hottest fighter of the game. "The Diamond" deserves to be considered, at worst, as a live outsider this weekend.
Let's take a closer look at five reasons why it would not be shocking to see Poirier get angry with UFC 242.
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1. Poirier is an attacker as versatile and complete as in the game.. It is possible that no living fighter can win 155 pounds and beat Nurmagomedov the same evening. Grappling at close range from melee would probably be an idea as useless as Poirier finds success. Poirier will have to control the distance and impose the respect in order to reach the strikes on his conditions.
The good news, however, is that Poirier has become an extremely precise striker who can change his posture, rely on his footwork to cut the cage, punch both hands and break his opponent's leg with hard knocks. It will be essential to avoid any form of recklessness against Nurmagomedov, as well as the selectivity on the volume of his strikes to limit the openings to be shot. But unlike Conor McGregor, a one-dimensional headhunter who has not had the chance to find Nurmagomedov's chin with the slightest power, Poirier is versatile enough to force his opponents to be more cautious in their attempts to impose their will.
2. It is in the middle of a historically impressive series. To say that Poirier culminates as an incoming fighter on Saturday would be a huge understatement. Since defeating TKO in 2014 against McGregor in his last fight at 145 pounds, Poirier has qualified 9-1 (1 NC) as a lightweight and has apparently grown and evolved as a fighter every step of the way where he is now at his age. 30. What has been the quality of Poirier in the last two years? Asked about the stakes of the 155-pound unification battle on Saturday, he recently told reporters that a victory over Nurmagomedov would make him the biggest lightweight in history. ; UFC. Although a bold statement can certainly offend the reflex ambivalence and recall how a fighter like BJ Penn was at its peak, adding Nurmagomedov to the series of four victories won by Poirier would open your eyes. development.
Since 2017, Poirier has defeated Jim Miller, has become the second fighter to stop Justin Gaethje in action and holds victories in the round of 16 on former champions Anthony Pettis and Eddie Alvarez. As if that was not enough, Poirier defeated Max Holloway in five inflamed rounds in April when the current feather king took up the challenge of winning the Interim Lightweight title. If Poirier were to defeat Nurmagomedov, he would not only win the full title, but he could still ensure immortality at 155 pounds.
More UFC 242: Make the staff predictions, the choices | Khabib on the verge of stardom | Fight the cards
3. Pear tree is a natural finisher. During his last 14 appearances in the Octagon, Poirier has been shown to scorecards only twice. Although two of these fights were KO defeats and the third a non-contest after Alvarez had illegal knees, this is testament to Poirier's aggressive style and his ability to finish his opponents once. 39, he wounded them. The longer this fight lasted, the more it would favor Nurmagomedov, since his struggle so often drained the opponents of their fuel tanks.
Poirier will probably have to finish Nurmagomedov to win, and even if it is a broken record, the success of Michael Johnson in the stunning Nurmagomedov at the beginning of his bid defeat, has the firepower and finish the instincts to finish the job. With the dynamic ability to strike hard with each of his four members, he could be the prototype of the ideal fighter to thwart what Nurmagomedov is doing so well.
4. His most impressive evolution came mentally. Anyone who looks so easily at Poirier to be distracted by McGregor's vulgar speech five years ago before being drawn into the kind of reckless fighting that led to his release from TKO can attest to the impressive maturity of Poirier. Not only did he cultivate the kind of allegiance to the championship that reduces mistakes, but Poirier performed well in the chaos of brawls against Alvarez, Gaethje and Holloway. As McGregor has learned to his cost, trying to dispel psyche Nurmagomedov is a loss of speed because the native of Dagestan is an athlete as tough as the UFC.
The evolution of Poirier in this category can not be overlooked and should help to block distractions and implement a game plan despite an unfamiliar context on a foreign land in which Nurmagomedov will likely be hailed as a conquering hero. If Nurmagomedov managed to take Poirier early and often, there was no indication that it could affect his fuel tank. But the critics and fans of the interim champion have more to worry about than it is falling under the pressure of adversity. The brain growth of Poirier simply can not be neglected.
5. All of Poirier's life and career have prepared him at this time. It may seem derisory to describe it in this way and to try to describe something as commonplace as a certain ambition as to why Poirier could have an advantage in this fight. But anyone who has followed his path knows how hard he has worked, month after month, year after year, and fight after fight, to overcome the opportunity he has to seize the opportunity. opportunity that he has in front of him. The now unforgettable comments of Poirier after his victory over Holloway in which he declared "to know that I had 25 minutes to make life more just tonight" summarize the stakes for him and the amount of blood, sweat and tears that he set to discover how much he can be.
For Pear, the UFC 242 represents the culmination of dreams of a lifetime. Meanwhile, for Nurmagomedov, in some ways it is only an additional title defense. This does not mean that the champion will neglect the challenge, but the combination of Nurmagomedov's dismissal after 11 months of suspension following the suspension of his UFC 229 and the almost magical journey of reinvention that Poirier is currently undertaking let's know that motivation will not fail for "The Diamond" is polite.
Who wins Poirier against Nurmagomedov and Felder against Barboza and how does each fight end? Now head over to SportsLine for detailed selections on the 13 fights of the UFC 242, all from an unparalleled expert who has earned more than $ 21,000 in MMA selections over the past year.
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