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“Be an as*****” – Dustin Poirier responds to not fighting “as*****” Conor McGregor at UFC 257

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Conor McGregor wasn’t his usual self before UFC 257 and Dustin Poirier shared his thoughts on the same

Conor McGregor vs Dustin Poirier at UFC 257 saw a different side of the Irishman.

The UFC is used to a brash and cocky McGregor who constantly taunts his opponents before fights. However, a different McGregor came out, someone who showed immense respect to his rival, Poirier.

Dustin Poirier reacts after his knockout victory over Conor McGregor of Ireland in a lightweight fight during the UFC 257 event inside Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 23, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

This caught many off guard and McGregor ended up losing too. However, the humility was still there post the loss as McGregor congratulated Poirier for using his kicks to damage the Irishman’s leg.

McGregor then hinted that he was going back to his old self but this remains a huge talking point. Joe Rogan was speaking to Poirier on the latest episode of his podcast.

Conor McGregor’s arm looked incredibly jacked (Instagram)

Rogan asked Poirier if he was surprised seeing a McGregor that was not an “as*****” and The Diamond seemed happy not to face this kind of McGregor:

“Fighting is hectic already, you are about to go in there for 25 minutes and you have been training, so you know what’s on the line, so it is just a lot of pressure.

“It being a little calm, for me, was smooth sailing, man. It’s already hectic enough, I would say the same thing about the fans when I fought at the Apex, it was nice.”

Poirier claimed it was relaxing that there weren’t fans screaming and shouting during the fights. Rogan then brought up how McGregor not being an “as*****” wasn’t good for him and Poirier claimed that the Irishman needed to go back to being one:

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“Yeah, be an as*****.”

A mature Conor McGregor?

Poirier also brought up that maybe this was a different side of McGregor. The Irishman was also respectful of Donald Cerrone before the Poirier fight and this could have been a sign of maturity.

“He did the same with Cowboy [Cerrone]. Maybe this is him just maturing and he’s got a few kids now, has one on the way.

“Maybe he is just maturing, we all change maybe he is a different person.”

However, Rogan brought up how some of McGregor’s antics could have led to this. The Irishman had a lot of problems before the Khabib Nurmagomedov fight where he threw a sign at a bus and broke some glass.

Referee Herb Dean separates Khabib Nurmagomedov of Russia from Conor McGregor of Ireland after McGregor tapped out in their UFC lightweight championship bout during the UFC 229 event inside T-Mobile Arena on October 6, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

There was also the aftermath of the loss where a brawl broke out with Khabib and McGregor taking out other staff.

Jose Aldo was another fight that was brought up by the pair. The Brazilian was “tortured” by McGregor leading up to the fight and that affected his performance in the Octagon.

Poirier claimed that he too felt the same way in the first fight against McGregor and believed he was like a deer in the headlights during that loss.

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Saiyed Adeem Karim

Ditching a corporate job to follow a dream isn't easy, but when football comes calling, who can say no? Been following the beautiful game since 1998. Liverpool addict, F1 fanatic!