UFC superstar Conor McGregor responded after his TKO loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264, saying that “you need people like me.”
McGregor broke his ankle and lost via first-round TKO (doctor stoppage) to his rival Poirier in the main event of Saturday’s UFC 264 pay-per-view card. It was a tough loss for the Irishman, who was also stopped by Poirier’s punches back in January at UFC 257. Now that Poirier has won the trilogy by a score of 2-1, it’s hard to say what is next for McGregor, but he is still holding out hope that the UFC will give him the chance to fight Poirier again given how the fight ended. Either way, it’s clear McGregor’s spirit was not broken by the loss.
Taking to his social media following UFC 264, McGregor responded following the TKO loss.
You need people like me
McGregor has now lost three of his last four fights in the Octagon, though it’s worth noting that two of those defeats came against Poirier and the other came against former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. Still, the fact that McGregor’s only win in the last five years is Donald Cerrone is troubling. While it doesn’t feel like it was that long ago that McGregor was at the top of the sport and knocking out everyone in his path, at this point, it feels like he may be past his prime and it’s hard to see him being a champ again.
That being said, McGregor is still an absolutely massive star in mixed martial arts, and he’s right when he says that we need people like him in the sport. For all his flaws, McGregor brings a lot of eyeballs to the sport and the UFC wouldn’t be as big without his contribution.
What do you think is next for Conor McGregor after losing to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264?