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Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier will headline UFC 264, one of the biggest pay-per-view events of the year. The highly-anticipated rubber match between two of the biggest stars in the lightweight division will go down on Saturday, July 10, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Poirier passed up the opportunity to fight for the lightweight championship that Khabib Nurmagomedov vacated. At UFC 264, it will be revealed whether Poirier's decision to take on the more lucrative trilogy bout over the title fight was a wise business decision or a costly mistake.
Meanwhile, McGregor is on a quest for absolution. Once a double champion and a top pound-for-pound fighter, the Irishman is looking for his first victory in the lightweight division since 2016.
Before this momentous trilogy bout goes down, let's take a look at all that has transpired between the two rivals - from their initial meeting at UFC 178 to their last outing at UFC 257, their online feud regarding Dustin Poirier's charity, and everything else in between.
Here are five things you need to know about Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor 3:
#5 What have Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor been saying about each other ahead of UFC 264?
Conor Mcgregor and Dustin Poirier have been sniping at one another through interviews and social media posts ahead of UFC 264. The Irishman dared his opponent to keep the fight on the feet and disregard the wrestling component of MMA. McGregor took to Twitter to send a message to Poirier:
Poirier responded by reminding McGregor what the first "M" in MMA stands for. In a sit-down interview with ESPN, 'The Diamond' said:
"[Conor McGregor] just said something on 'The first one to shoot is a dusty b****', that's what he said. Isn't he the one who's always preaching about the flow, the full martial arts, no holds barred, no rules, the ultimate fighting like when he's talking about boxing and stuff? How about the first one to get taken down is a dusty b****? It reeks of insecurity to me."
Conor McGregor responded to the same during an Instagram Live session and said that Dustin Poirier would pay for the comments he's made.
#4 What happened the first two times Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor fought?
As it stands, archrivals Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier are 1-1 against each other. At UFC 264, they will settle the score to prove once and for all who the better fighter is.
The first time they met was on the main card of UFC 178 in 2014. Back then, Poirier was the more established fighter of the two as he was already with the company for three years. Conor McGregor, on the other hand, wasn't the megastar that he is today, appearing in his fourth UFC fight.
Staying true to his pre-fight prediction, Conor McGregor made quick work of Dustin Poirier, knocking him out with a left hand at 1:46 of the opening round. There was some controversy over whether the Irishman hit his opponent in the back of the head with elbow strikes as he looked for the finish. However, it didn't matter in the end as McGregor snagged an impressive victory just the same.
Seven years later, Dustin Poirier avenged his loss and picked up arguably the biggest win of his career at UFC 257. 'The Diamond' utilized calf kicks that immobilized his foe, setting up a killing sequence in the second round.
#3 Success and downfall
Dustin Poirier credits his 2014 loss to Conor McGregor as a significant turning point in his career. Although he walked away from UFC 178 with a painful defeat, he took with him a valuable lesson that would help him evolve into the fighter that he is today.
Poirier admitted that he fell prey to McGregor's mind games ahead of UFC 178. As a result, he fought recklessly and paid the price with his consciousness for it. In an interview with ESPN, Poirier revealed:
"I wanted to make the guy pay, you know? I was angry. I remember wanting to fight him at the weigh-in, which is crazy to look back at. I was just in such a weird place in my mind."
McGregor, meanwhile, believes ring rust is what led to his downfall in the rematch. During the post-fight interview, the Irishman admitted that he wasn't as active as he wanted.
“I need activity. You don’t get away with being inactive in this business,” said McGregor.
Moreover, much has been said about McGregor's over-reliance on his boxing. Several fighters and analysts have pointed out that the Irishman left his lead leg vulnerable to low kicks due to him sticking to a wide boxing stance. In response, 'Notorious' vowed to bring more weapons to UFC 264.
#2 The Good Fight Foundation incident
![Dustin Poirier (left), Conor McGregor (right)[Photo credit: Instagram @thenotoriousmma @dustinpoirier]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/07/7d393-16255547250584-800.jpg)
After seemingly being on cordial terms with each other after UFC 257, Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier reverted to being at odds. This unsuspecting development came after the American accused his opponent of doubling back from a donation he vowed to make.
The rivals got into an ugly back-and-forth on social media about McGregor's pledge to donate $500,000 to Poirier's charity, The Good Fight Foundation. The Dublin native responded by saying that his team wanted more details about what the money would be used for, which never came.
In the end, Conor McGregor finally shelled out $500,000, but he didn't donate it to The Good Fight Foundation. Instead, he chose a different Louisiana-based charity as his beneficiary, the Boys & Girls Club of Acadiana of Lafayette.
Dustin Poirier ended up apologizing for publicizing his issue and attaching his charity to his feud with Conor McGregor.
“My apology was more for me because I felt like I attached my foundation, something that me and wife worked so hard to get where it’s at, to something negative,” the 32-year-old told ESPN. “I don’t want that cloud hanging above it, and I attached it to negativity because of a personal thing going on, and when I’m the president and the voice of the foundation, I can’t do those type of things."
#1 What's at stake for Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier?
![Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor [Photo credit: @dustinpoirier on Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/07/7a517-16255555680418-800.jpg)
UFC president Dana White has announced that the winner of Poirier-McGregor 3 will be next in line to challenge Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title.
For Dustin Poirier, it would be another chance to become an undisputed UFC world champion. He previously captured the interim lightweight title in 2019 but failed to unify the belts against then-undisputed 155-pound champ Khabib Nurmagomedov.
But for McGregor, it's bigger than the title as his legacy and reputation will be on the line. Despite being a former lightweight champion, McGregor is 1-2 in the division. He's done his best work at featherweight, where he went 7-0 and is relatively good at welterweight with a record of 2-1.
If McGregor loses twice in a row to Poirier, his stock will be at its lowest ever since he rose to superstardom. He'd still be a big star in the UFC, no less, but his days as a top contender might come to an end.
