5 most hard-hitting predictions for the Conor McGregor vs Dustin Poirier trilogy fight at UFC 264

Two of the octagon's biggest stars will collide as Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier write the final chapter of their rivalry in a highly-anticipated trilogy at UFC 264. Scheduled to go down on July 10 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, the pay-per-view event is shaping up to be one of the most stacked cards of the year.

With each boasting a knockout win over one another, arch-rivals McGregor and Poirier will try to prove who the better fighter is once and for all. As if both men needed more motivation to win, UFC president Dana White announced that the winner will be rewarded with a lightweight title shot.

Needless to say, there's a huge level of excitement surrounding UFC 264. Some of the biggest names in mixed martial arts hopped on the McGregor-Poirier 3 hype train by sharing their predictions and breakdowns.

#5 Firas Zahabi - MMA coach

Firas Zahabi (Image Credit: @firas_Zahabi on Instagram)

Georges St-Pierre's coach and head of the famed Tristar Gym in Montreal Firas Zahabi believes that McGregor's ability to finish the fight will be the main factor. The Canadian MMA coach said-

"Number one, take the legkicks off the table. I hope for him that he is training round the clock not to get leg kicked. And after that, he has to keep the volume low. He doesn't have to throw as many punches as [Dustin] Poirier. He has to keep the volume low. He has to get a killshot. He has 25 minutes to get a killshot or he most likely loses a decision... I wouldn't try to encourage him to keep up with the strikes because that's just going to take away his explosiveness. What's special about [Conor] McGregor is he has the ability to finish a fight like nobody else.

"It's going to come down to whether McGregor can stop those kicks. If McGregor slows the pace of the fight down, doesn't get in that boxing stance and starts trying to trade and accumulate points - in my opinion, that's juist not true to his style. He's got to take his time and look for a kill. It's a killshot or nothing."

Official Pick: Undecided

#4 Dan Hardy - Former UFC commentator and MMA analyst

Dan Hardy (Image Credit: @danhardymma on Instagram)

Former UFC welterweight title challenger and commentator Dan Hardy thinks Conor McGregor needs to bring back some of the weapons he previously discarded from his arsenal. The retired British fighter said-

"If he had beaten Poirier the second time, I'd pick Poirier to win the third time because McGregor wouldn't be as interested. But because he's coming off a loss, I think he's more motivated and he's more likely to win the next one around. I think he took Poirier a little light because he had stopped him so early the first time around.

"I don't think he credited Poirier with his adaptability to be able to find a way to beat McGregor. So he just went back to the, 'I'll just counter punch with my left. I'll come over his jab and catch him with my left.' Because that seems the only and the main gameplan which is what left his lead leg vulnerable.

"Then you go back to the first fight and in the first 30 seconds or so he's doing the long karate stance. He's got a hop-side kick and a spinning kick. I think he goes back to that version. I think we see him lighter on his feet. I think we see him much more of a mixed martial artist instead of a counter-puncher. And I think he's gonna be able to cut the octagon down against Poirier with that hop-side kick, sliding into his left hand. There are a lot of techniques that he just neglected."

Official Pick: Conor McGregor

#3 Colby Covington - UFC welterweight

Colby Covington is not a fan of Conor McGregor or Dustin Poirier. However, the number one-ranked welterweight contender believes that McGregor has lost the fire in his belly due to his luxurious lifestyle. Covington said-

"Everybody's talking about the 'Con man' McGregor. He's washed up, man. Conor's got nothing left in the tank. He doesn't wanna fight anymore. It's just his pride that's bringing him back. He has big pride and big ego and he can't let his pride and ego go.

"I think it'll be the same outcome. 'Con man' McGregor, he washed up. He's cashed out. He made so much money; he's not hungry like he was before, you know. And he's not that broke kid that came up in the streets of Ireland and was fighting for food.

"He's got this luxury life. He's privileged. So, that privilege, it takes a toll on you. His work ethic is gone. It just so happens that Dustin Poirier got lucky timing with that and he got the fight."

Official Pick: Dustin Poirier

#2 Valentina Shevchenko - UFC women's flyweight champion

The queen of the UFC women's flyweight division has admitted that she's a bit biased as a huge Conor McGregor fan. Nonetheless, Valentina Shevchenko pointed out what went wrong for the Irishman during the rematch and said she believes he'll find a way to adjust.

"I feel that just maybe for this fight, he was doing too much boxing in his preparation and when the moment came that the hit landed from Dustin, in MMA you would go for a clinch, you would try to have a little bit more time to recover and get back on your feet. But in boxing you are trying to escape and move around.

"I definitely believe he would make adjustments but I think it's gonna be a very good fight. But Dustin Poirier is a very strong fighter and now his amazing success gave him much more confidence. Much more power and energy.

"So it's like when two fighters of a high level meet each other, it's very hard to predict the result. But like I said, my sympathies go to Conor McGregor."

Official Pick: Conor McGregor

#1 Chael Sonnen - Former UFC light heavyweight and middleweight

According to former UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen, McGregor will live and die by his ability to defend against Dustin Poirier's calf kicks. 'The American Gangster' said-

"Step one – and we saw this with our own eyes but we'll also listen to Conor (McGregor), we'll take Conor's opinion for it – the calf kick. Problematic. Can Conor stop that? There's only a couple of ways you can defend a calf kick. One, you could just bring it up and block.

"Let me tell you about a night. Tim Sylvia became the champion of the world because Rico Rodriguez threw a kick. And while Rico was on one foot, Tim threw one straight down the middle and knocked him out. That's the other defense to a kick.

"There's two things he can do. There's no other things created. He can check the kick or he can respond to the kick. There's no other technique that's been created. The question becomes: How does Poirier set it up? And that's not a question for us to answer. That's a question for Conor."

Official Pick: Conor McGregor

Edited by Harvey Leonard