UFC lightweight Al Iaquinta was banking on Conor McGregor to win by first-round KO against Dustin Poirier at UFC 257. However, 2 minutes into the second round, Poirier would go on to shock the world by knocking out McGregor. ‘Raging’ Al was not too happy with the Irishman’s showing.
Iaquinta played ‘Mystic Mac’ ahead of the highest pay-per-view since UFC 229. The real estate agent would record a prediction video, explaining the psychology of the main event, playing into McGregor’s favor. He told his fans that McGregor’s ‘kumbaya’ with Poirier would leave ‘The Diamond’ too comfortable and in his state, would leave him open to being knocked out quick like the first time they fought.
“[McGregor] hit Poirier with the kumbaya.” said Iaquinta. “At the weigh-ins, the staredown. Connor gets in his stance, Dustin gets in his stance. Connor gets slow, Dustin gets low. Conor gets up. Dustin gets up. Conor starts talking, Dustin starts talking. [Poirier] is just a step behind and it’s like he’s a little star-struck. I think that translates right into the fight. Conor McGregor, first-round knockout.”
Iaquinta would later apologize to his fans who he convinced that McGregor would win, however, he cut no slack when it came to the former champion’s performance.
“Conor screwed me on that.” Iaquinta told MMA Island. “What the hell was that?”
“He goes in the cage and [Poirier’s] pounding the guy. That’s not Conor, what the hell? Come on dude, what the freak? He was doing the kumbaya too much. He made best friends with Dustin before the fight.”
“He got taken down, it was a weird takedown. It wasn’t a very clear shot, it kinda just fell into him. Conor was off balance. He got him down early. Conor gets back up, he’s against the cage, gets back off the cage, then he just stays there. That’s never the game-plan for him. The more grappling he does, the slower he gets. I think he should have broken away from that clinch. He should have started firing shots. He was just hanging out therw.”
“Then, the leg kicks. Dustin had a great game-plan. Southpaw against southpaw. Crushed that lead leg with leg kicks. Like Conor, switch up the game-plan. Switch your stances. I’ve been hit with those leg kicks, those things are not fun. You don’t want to stand there and take them. He didn’t change up much.”
“Dustin went out there with a great game-plan, Conor was one of the worst versions I’ve ever seen [of him]. He always has good hand speed, always accurate, he was winning with punches. Dustin at 155, he’s seeing the punches better, he’s absorbing them, landing them and taking them.”
“It was a definitely weird fight as far as I’m looking at for Conor.”
Al Iaquinta’s name has been mentioned in a pre-fight interview with Conor McGregor, randomly saying he’d like to fight Raging Al at some stage. The Long Islander says the Irishman is in ‘big trouble’ and is in ‘La La Land.’
“If you’re going to go against a guy like me, I don’t know… we’re not in the same spot in everything. He’s fighting a different animal, most of the guys really. Anybody I get in there against there’s not going to be no freaking kumbaya, I’m going after them.”
Al Iaquinta is open to fighting McGregor but has his eyes on Paul Felder, preferably in April.