UFC 264: Poirier vs. McGregor 3 staff picks and predictions
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The Bloody Elbow staff has made its predictions for
UFC 264, and only Lewis McKeever is picking Conor McGregor to win the rubber match against Dustin Poirier. As for the co-main event, Lewis is again the dissenting voice as he believes Gilbert Burns will beat Stephen Thompson in the battle of the former welterweight title challengers.
Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor
Mookie Alexander: It’s hard to see McGregor out-warring Dustin Poirier when none of Messrs Alvarez, Hooker, Gaethje, or Holloway could do it. So that still leaves Conor with about 8 minutes or so to win this fight. He won the first round of the last fight and landed some hard shots that stung Poirier, so can he turn that into a KO? Absolutely! But if he doesn’t? Poirier just has more tools in his arsenal. It’s not just the kicks — it’s just having sharper combination punching and the ability to land more punishing offense on the exit in close quarters. He’s also damn good in the clinch and can fight at a pace Conor absolutely does not thrive in. I sense McGregor will fight better than he did in January but it won’t matter. Conor will wear down, Poirier will hurt him and then he’ll choke him out.