By: Hans Themistode
The boxing future of Conor McGregor will have to wait, at least for now.
Heading into his third and, presumed, final showdown against Dustin Poirier, Conor McGregor believed everything was going to go his way.
After knocking out Poirier seven years earlier, McGregor saw the series tied at one apiece due to a January stoppage defeat earlier this year. Now though, Poirier officially titled the series score in his favor.
As the horn of the opening bell rang, former United States of America President Donald Trump, nestled comfortably into his ringside seat as a sold out T-Mobile Arena yelled in excitement. McGregor walked confidently to the center of the octagon. Meeting him, with equally, if not more hubris, was Poirier. While McGregor has always been known for sending his opposition to the mat with right and left hands, this time, he attempted to throw several leg kicks to get his attention.
Poirier obliged McGregor’s kicking game and returned a few of his own. On one occasion, McGregor was stopped right in his tracks from Poirier’s leg kicks which gave him the opening to tag him with a right hand.
The exchange on the feet would only last a short while as Poirier brought things down to the mat. A guillotine submission attempt by McGregor saw the crowd jump to its feet and roar. Yet, they appeared stunned as Poirier slipped his head out and began landing a series of shots on the ground.
To the credit of McGregor, after taking several hard elbows, he managed to muscle his way back to his feet. As the former two-division UFC world champion stood in front of his man, he took a step back as if he were attempting to uncork a huge blow. But, as he took that now infamous step back, his left ankle turned in a grotesque way. The Irishmen collapsed to the ground in the octagon, yelling in agony. Referee Herb Dean immediately called a halt to their contest at the end of the first round.
Unsatisfied with the results, McGregor began profusely, shouting derogatory remarks at both Poirier and his wife, Jolie Poirier.
All week long, promoter Dana White informed reporters that the event as a whole was trending to break Pay-Per-View sales. While it will take several days or possibly weeks for the official numbers to be released, amongst the seemingly millions who tuned in, was Floyd Mayweather.
Having stopped McGregor in the boxing ring in 2017, Mayweather revealed that he dropped a cool $50,000 wager on Poirier. Now, due to his win, Mayweather will collect a total of $85,714.30.
As Mayweather continues to line his pockets with cash, McGregor was wheeled out of the octagon on a stretcher due to what appeared to be a broken ankle. In terms of what could be next for McGregor, White revealed that when he’s fit and able, a fourth showdown against Poirier will be on the table.