Manny Pacquiao will just have to wait.
Following UFC 257 and Dustin Poirier’s dramatic (t)KO victory over Conor McGregor, it seemed reasonable to wonder just what would be next for the UFC’s superstar talent. There had been talks of a boxing match with Manny Pacquiao. Or perhaps the Nate Diaz trilogy bout that seems to always be a lurking possibility whenever McGregor is between opponents. And, of course, there’s been a lot of pressure from White, in the pursuit of his dream to get Khabib Nurmagomedov and the SBG Ireland talent back in the ring together again.
Recently, however, rumors have been flying that the UFC is all set to pursue an instant rematch between McGregor and Poirier. A chance at instant redemption for the UFC’s golden goose. And in a recent interview with ESPN, UFC president Dana White seemed to put a little extra weight behind those rumors—claiming that running things back with the ‘Diamond’ has been at the forefront of McGregor’s mind.
“100 percent [he wants the rematch],” White said (transcript via The Mac Life). “He’s completely obsessed with the rematch now and wants the fight back.”
“When you have two guys, Dustin who’s the number one guy in the world and a guy like Conor, and they both want it that badly, you do it. You do it,” he added. “These guys are going to all fight it out and we’re going to narrow it down to the two guys who will fight for the title.”
White also reiterated his recent claim that the UFC is planning to run the top of their lightweight division through a sort of unofficial tournament, trying to get as many of their top-ranked fighters at 155 to face off against one another to add some clarity to a current title picture that is murky at best.
“The fights that can be made to find out who becomes the next champion are unbelievable,” White teased. “We’re in for some incredible fights to find out which two of these guys from one to seven will square off to become the next world champion.”
For now at least, however, it appears the one fight fans can expect on the horizon is Poirier vs. McGregor 3. What that will mean for the rest of the talent around them is anyone’s guess.