Former UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley has predicted that Dustin Poirier will edge past Conor McGregor at UFC 264.
Woodley’s comments come ahead of McGregor’s latest fight at the upcoming pay-per-view. MMA’s biggest superstar will return to the Octagon on July 10 to battle “The Diamond” for the third time.
Against the Irishman at UFC 257 earlier this year, Poirier provided one of the most memorable moments of 2021 so far. The rematch, which took place on Fight Island in Abu Dhabi, saw Poirier write his name in the history books as the first man to knock McGregor out.
With McGregor’s victory over the Louisianan at UFC 178 in 2014, the pair are now at one win apiece in their rivalry and will complete a memorable trilogy in front of a sold out Las Vegas crowd next Saturday.
Despite admitting that the upcoming PPV headliner is tough to call, Woodley sees the advantage lying with Poirier. But while many have suggested that McGregor hasn’t had enough time to rectify the holes in his game that led to his loss last time out, Woodley has acknowledged that McGregor was winning the fight and looked good up until the stoppage.
During an interview with Helen Yee, “The Chosen One” stated that despite finding the fight hard to predict, he feels that Poirier’s higher level of activity could give him the edge on July 10.
“It was good stuff, I mean, Conor was winning that (UFC 257) fight. I don’t know what his condition was at for five rounds, I don’t know. He’s knocked out Dustin before so it’s not like he hasn’t really touched his chin or really clipped him before. So, it’s hard to say man. Dustin’s more active though, so if I was to give the advantage to anybody, Dustin’s been consistent, he’s been more active and there’s something about those reps in the Octagon.”
Woodley added that Poirier has a lot more to fight for than McGregor, given the former double-champion’s wealth and achievements.
“Conor’s not really fighting for the same thing anymore. He’s got all the money, he’s got all the stuff and when he wins or loses, it don’t really matter, you know what I mean. Him going out there and fighting is a big deal.”
While McGregor and Poirier get set to conclude their rivalry with a blockbuster trilogy fight inside the T-Mobile Arena next week, Tyron Woodley is preparing for his first venture into the squared circle.
The former dominant UFC star was released from the promotion after losing four consecutive fights against Kamaru Usman, Gilbert Burns, Colby Covington and Vicente Luque. He’ll hope to return to the win column when he enters the boxing ring with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on August 28.
Do you agree with Woodley’s prediction for the UFC 264 main event between Poirier and McGregor?
