Dana White believes Dustin Poirier chose wisely when he opted to fight Conor McGregor in a trilogy fight instead of challenging for the vacant lightweight championship.
Dustin Poirier’s and Conor McGregor’s unfinished business is sure to do big business, which is no doubt a reason why this is Poirier’s first choice for his next UFC bout. Poirier has always wanted to be a UFC champion, and surely he still does, but timing is everything. And at the present moment, it’s time for Poirier to continue striking while the iron is hot by fighting McGregor for the third time and a second consecutive big money fight.
At the UFC 260 pre-fight press conference, Dana White disclosed and/or theorized that this was the reasoning behind Poirier choosing to fight Conor McGregor next.
“Dustin wants the rematch [with Conor McGregor],” White said. “That’s smart. That’s what he should do. He should take the rematch, take that fight. It’s a big fight for him.
“Kid’s worked hard his whole life, his whole career to be in a position like this. That’s the fight you take. We’ve been in positions like this before with others who have made the mistake of not taking that fight, and [it was the] biggest mistake of their lives.”
A natural question to arise from these remarks is, “Who exactly turned down the Conor McGregor fight in the past?” Khabib Nurmagomedov? Justin Gaethje? Is Dana White talking about money fights in general? Who knows. What we do know is that the UFC is 100% looking at booking the trilogy fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier this summer, with White throwing out July as a possible month for the fight.
It was announced recently that the now-vacated lightweight championship will be decided between Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler. After defeating McGregor in January, Poirier had said that he would not be willing to fight an undeserving Michael Chandler for the title. He also specifically said that he’d be willing to step aside and let Oliveira fight Chandler for the title if he were offered that fight. So there is always the possibility that the UFC offered Poirier a title fight against Michael Chandler and that Poirier held true to his word and rejected it, leaving him open to fight McGregor for the third time and Oliveira available to take his place.
Speculation aside, it’s certainly a new era dawning in the lightweight division, and it’s one full of exciting matchups and endless possibilities.
Do you think Dustin Poirier made the right choice by choosing to fight Conor McGregor next instead of the world title?
