After an injury to Conor McGregor’s left ankle at UFC 264 on Saturday, Dustin Poirier defeated the Irishman. Following the first round, the bout was stopped when McGregor could not continue. Poirier scored his second win over McGregor in six months when McGregor was knocked out by a blow from Poirier.
Poirier now has a shot at the UFC’s lightweight championship following this win. Poirier believes McGregor’s leg may have been broken when he blocked a kick earlier in the fight. “I felt something, for sure,” Poirier said. “He fractured it on one of the kicks at the beginning of the fight, and then he broke it.”
McGregor's leg breaking back on itself #UFC264 pic.twitter.com/sZyYH7el0P
— MMA mania (@mmamania) July 11, 2021
In the first round, Poirier was mostly in control, parrying McGregor’s kicks and landing several strikes before taking control of him on the ground. The prone McGregor was pummeled and elbowed into submission one more time by Poirier – as he fell, his ankle bent gruesomely.
Before being escorted from the cage, McGregor was furious at the circumstances surrounding the loss. “This is not over!” he shouted. McGregor has not been able to replicate his fearsome MMA form from the past couple of years, which helped him attain fame. After losing decisively to Khabib Nurmagomedov and twice to Poirier, he beat only the over-the-hill Donald Cerrone.
The final three fights were also attended by former US President Donald Trump, who was booed loudly in the arena. Approximately $16.5 million in gate revenue was generated, according to UFC President Dana White.
