Dustin Poirier will tell you himself that the most devastating defeat of his career came at the hands of Conor McGregor.
But at UFC 195 he went some way to finding retribution by defeating the last man to beat McGregor; fellow Irishman Joseph Duffy.
The lightweight clash was part of the preliminary card at the MGM Grand Garden Arena – a decision derided by some corners of the MMA world.
The fight, which was initially due to headline last October’s UFC Fight Night 76 in Dublin, was instead on UFC’s streaming service, Fight Pass, after that original bout was cancelled when Duffy failed a concussion screening.
But both fighters were brought into the consciousness of the wider MMA world after UFC president Dana White confirmed it set Fight Pass records.
Poirier recorded a crucial win over the rising sensation with the scores 30-26 and 30-27 all in favour of ‘The Diamond’.
After taking over in the second following a tough first frame, Poirier continued to pour it on in the third with takedowns and hardfought top control to earn a hugely entertaining victory.
It broke the record,” said White at the post-fight press conference. “It’s the most-watched fight we’ve ever had on Fight Pass.”
As for the fight itself, Poirier said it went mostly according to plan, despite breaking his nose in two places.
“I thought his boxing was going to be good and it was,” Poirier said. “I knew he had a good ground game, a lot of submissions on his record but I executed the game plan.”
