Lafayette’s Dustin Poirier Beats Conor McGregor in Trilogy Fight
It took only five minutes for Dustin Poirier to get the job done.
Poirier, the number-one ranked lightweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, defeated Conor McGregor via a first-round technical knockout during their fight Saturday night in Las Vegas. The fight marks Poirier's second straight win over former multiple division champion McGregor.
The long awaited trilogy bout began after the two fighters refused to touch gloves before referee Herb Dean started the match. McGregor and Poirier exchanged leg kicks in the first minute of the fight. Poirier then stepped up his aggression, landing a flurry of punches on McGregor's face before tying him up against the cage. McGregor reversed Poirier's takedown by locking the Lafayette native in a front chancery. Poirier recovered, escaping McGregor's grasp. The two then exchanged punches while Poirier kept McGregor pinned to the canvas. McGregor tried to kick his way out of Poirier's grasp, but to no avail. Poirier kept McGregor on the canvas, landing several more punches and elbows to McGregor's jaw and nose before the horn sounded to end the first round.
Moments after the horn sounded, McGregor signaled to his corner to send a trainer or a doctor. McGregor apparently suffered a broken leg while falling to the canvas after taking a Poirier punch in the final 10 seconds of the round. Referee Dean signaled a halt to the bout, awarding the victory to Poirier via technical knockout.
Poirier said McGregor damaged his own leg during a kick early in the fight. He said he felt McGregor's leg pop during an impact before it gave out later in the fight.
"I felt something, but he was kicking me hard," Poirier said.
Poirier then addressed McGregor's prefight comments, to which Poirier took exception.
"There's no holds barred with the trash talk, but he said he was going to murder me," Poirier said. "You don't talk like that.
"This guy's a dirtbag, man," Poirier continued. "Karma's not a b****, but it's a mirror."
Acadiana-area tweeters expressed surprise and excitement after Poirier's victory.
Poirier's next fight is expected to be against UFC World Lightweight Champion Charles Oliveira. That fight could happen as early as the end of this year.