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Conor McGregor has promised to show a "lot of weapons" in his trilogy fight with Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
McGregor, who was criticized for the boxing-heavy approach he adopted in his UFC 257 fight against Poirier, has vowed to give his opponent a mixed martial arts fight.
The Notorious One and The Diamond are currently 1-1 in their series of MMA fights. The first Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier matchup was a featherweight bout that saw the Irishman win via first-round TKO. The fight took place at UFC 178 (September 2014).
The rematch between McGregor and Poirier was a lightweight bout that saw the American win via second-round TKO. The fight also happened to be both fighters’ most recent octagon appearance. It took place at UFC 257 (January 2021).
Conor McGregor recently conducted a fan Q&A session via Instagram Live ahead of his upcoming UFC 264 trilogy fight. During the session, he indicated that he’ll utilize a lot of weapons, and not just his boxing skills, at UFC 264.
McGregor stated:
“Give him a proper head kick. There’ll be a lot of weapons. There’ll be a lot of weapons produced on the night for sure. He wants mixed martial arts, he’s gonna get it.” (*Video courtesy: Deep MMA & Boxing, originally posted by Conor McGregor on Instagram Live; H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Conor McGregor seemingly took a jibe at Dustin Poirier for criticizing his boxing-heavy approach in their rematch. McGregor stated that since Poirier wants mixed martial arts, that’s what he’s going to get.
Conor McGregor will be looking to mix his martial arts at UFC 264
In the aftermath of their UFC 257 matchup earlier this year, Dustin Poirier had credited his vast array of MMA skills – including leg kicks (particularly calf kicks) and takedowns – for his win over Conor McGregor.
Poirier had emphasized that they’d signed up for a mixed martial arts fight and not a boxing match, which is why he mixed up his attacks and successfully beat McGregor.
The story leading up to UFC 257 was that Conor McGregor was preparing for a professional boxing match against boxing legend Manny Pacquiao. Dustin Poirier was simply being viewed by many as a warm-up fight before McGregor’s boxing match against Pacquiao.
Despite getting the better of Poirier in the boxing exchanges early in their fight at UFC 257, McGregor’s movement was severely compromised as the fight progressed. This was due to Poirier consistently tagging McGregor with calf kicks rather than fighting a pure boxing battle.
Conor McGregor’s lead leg, his right leg, was noticeably damaged in round two. Dustin Poirier eventually sensed the finish. Poirier caught a relatively stationary McGregor along the fence, downed him with a punching combination, and emerged as the victor via TKO in round two.
Considering the aforementioned facts, many in the MMA community believe that Conor McGregor will indeed mix his martial arts in his upcoming fight. They expect McGregor to utilize his complete arsenal of MMA skills, rather than just boxing, against Poirier at UFC 264 on July 10th, 2021.
