As per sources, the UFC has officially reached out to both Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier for a non-title lightweight bout.
After a virtual fallout with UFC president Dana White, Conor McGregor took to Twitter to reach out to fellow lightweight Dustin Poirier and invited him for a charity fight on December 12, the same date as the UFC 256 card. Poirier, who has been active in the search for fights accepted the offer almost immediately, and the fight was set to happen in Ireland, for charitable organizations supported by both Conor and Poirier.
The UFC has, however, reached out to both fighters to fight at the UFC too. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani reported that Conor was offered the fight from UFC, but the management was determined to fight Manny Pacquiao, as stated in his tweets. In an interview with Barstool Sports, Dana White confirmed this saying “We offered Dustin and Conor a fight, so we’re waiting to hear back from them both.”
On Wednesday, Dustin Poirier teased his followers by tweeting out “I accept”, but didn’t clarify if he was referring to the UFC bout or to the Charity match. While MMA twitter made huge speculations, Poirier cleared the air via a text to ESPN, denying being approached by the UFC at all. Later during the day, Conor McGregor officially announced that the charity match has been finalized.
Martial art sparring match in aid of charity. Dublin, December 12th 2020.
Free to air spar. McGregor vs Poirier.
List of chosen charities available soon. All donations welcome ❤️ pic.twitter.com/cLfFbQ0IJF— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) September 30, 2020
“Martial art sparring match in aid of charity. Dublin, December 12th 2020. Free to air spar. McGregor vs Poirier. List of chosen charities available soon. All donations welcome.“, he tweeted.
Conor McGregor goes head to head against the UFC
Conor recently expressed his frustration with the UFC when he came out against Dana White, claiming that he has been open to fights throughout 2020, which is different from what we have been told by Dana White. The former two-division champion even posted screenshots of their conversation on twitter, where he is seen requesting fights against Diego Sanchez.
He was also offered to be a replacement fighter at Tony Ferguson vs Justin Gaethje, but refused the offer as he admittedly wanted his own main event, which is understandable for a guy like McGregor. Do you think McGregor will accept an official bout against Dustin Poirier in the UFC after all this?
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