"You can’t be a sprinter and a marathon runner at the same time"- Michael Bisping points out a disadvantage Conor McGregor might have against Dustin Poirier at UFC 264

Michael Bisping recently weighed in on Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier with days to go before their highly anticipated trilogy fight. Bisping also noted a major disadvantage that McGregor might have when he faces Poirier in the main-event at UFC 264.

According to Michael Bisping, Conor McGregor's performance tends to see a steady decline as the fight progresses. While Bisping acknowledged the threat that McGregor poses early in the fight, he is also certain that the Irishman won't be as effective in the later rounds.

Comparing Conor McGregor to a performance athlete, Michael Bisping said at the UFC 264 preview show on BT Sport:

"Because I watched that second fight again last night and you see in the second round, Conor lands the left hand clean. But nowhere near as fast, as powerful and as snappy as he did in the first round. That is a psychological disadvantage that Conor has or a double-edged sword. He’s a sprinter, he’s a killer, he’s a savage, he’s a one punch knockout artist. But you can’t be a sprinter and a marathon runner at the same time. You just can’t do that. People don’t do that. And he’s a sprinter. And when he’s on foreman in the first, early rounds or the first couple of rounds, he’s super dangerous. But as the fight goes on that changes."

Michael Bisping predicts the winner of Conor McGregor vs Dustin Poirier

Fight week is 𝐻𝐸𝑅𝐸. [ #UFC264 | July 10 | Live on E+ PPV: https://t.co/DZxtGSEqWu ] pic.twitter.com/opcFWZlKiW

— UFC (@ufc) July 5, 2021

While Michael Bisping noted that it was almost impossible to predict the winner of the trilogy fight, he did have a pick. According to Bisping, Dustin Poirier will get his hand raised if he can last the first round against Conor McGregor at UFC 264. The UFC Hall of Famer told co-host Adam Catterall:

"If you wanted to know which way I’m gonna lean and of course you wanna know, then I think Dustin Poirier. I think he’s the bigger guy. I think he can take his (Conor McGregor’s) best shots. And again it sounds so cliché to say but I do believe it’s true. If Dustin gets him out of the first round, then it changes in his favor."