It’s been a couple of weeks since Conor McGregor suffered a second round knockout defeat at the hands of Dustin Poirier at UFC 257, which means it’s time for “Notorious” to break down what went wrong (and right) in the defeat (see it again here).
Much like he did after his loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229, “Notorious” meticulously pointed out why he feels he came up short, saying that despite his setback he is still on the right path to where he wants to get.
“Some highlights from my last fight! What a trilogy I now have on my hands. Exciting! With a handle on the leg kicks I will get back to having fun in there. I was in second gear cruising this fight. Best condition I’ve ever been in,” he wrote on Instagram.
“After the wrestling and clinch exchanges my shots still held their pop. First time for me with this so I am very encouraged to keep going. It was the first time I did not use/nor need the stool between rounds also. I did need the stool after though that’s for sure,” he added.
According to his observations, McGregor says his stance was off since he was focusing more in a boxing stance in anticipation of a possible boxing match against Manny Pacquiao that never came to be.
“A little single disciplined in my approach and stance with mostly boxing. It’s what I get for picking this bout and opponent as a precursor to a boxing match against Pacman. I deserved to get the legs kicked off me going in with this thinking.
“This is not the game to play around with. Besides this, my shots where sharp and I was in full control. Albeit the leg attacks where building up on me throughout the course. 18 in total thrown at me, with the final one buckling my leg fully, that was that,” he added. “The peroneal nerve compromised. Fascinating! First time to experience it.”
Conor then went on to give Poirier his proper dues while saying that a trilogy fight is the only thing that makes sense now.
“Then a tremendous finishing flurry by my opponent. Hats off! A well fought fight by The Diamond. 1 a piece now with a Trilogy bout for all the marbles! Wow! Exciting! Not a trilogy I was expecting, nor the tactical affair I was anticipating, but I’d be lying if I said this wasn’t meant to be. This is exactly how this was always meant to be! Buzzing!!”
Of course, a third fight between and Poirier may not come right away since “The Diamond” is looking ahead for a shot at the Lightweight title, which is still being held by Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Of course, Poirier’s future opponent relies heavily on “The Eagle’s” fighting future and promotion’s decision to strip him of the title or not. That gives McGregor plenty of time to get back to the drawing board to see what’s next for him.