Former UFC champ-champ Daniel Cormier has refuted the claims made by Al Iaquinta regarding Dustin Poirier ahead of UFC 257.
‘Raging Al’ had previously slammed ‘The Diamond’ for his attempts to lure Conor McGregor into a rematch this January.
“What is that guy doing?” Iaquinta told ESPN. “What is he, Conor’s fan? He’s like a fan fighting Conor. It’s so cringey. Conor’s like, ‘I’ll fly you over, and I’ll donate my money to your charity.’ I’d be like, ‘Bro, I’ll fly my (expletive) self over and when I beat the (expletive) out of you, I’ll donate my own money. What is this? Kumbaya? Like what the hell. Are you kidding? He’s lost the fight already.”
Al Iaquinta continued to go off on Daniel Cormier’s friend and fellow Louisiana fighter Dustin Poirier.
“If the fight happens, there’s not a doubt in my mind Dustin’s losing that fight. He’s already (conceded) in everything. He’s like, ‘Thank you for the fight. We’ll fight in Ireland or wherever, and thank you, we’ll fight for charity, it’ll be great.’ It’s like, dude, get out of here. This is a fight. What? Are you freakin’ kidding me? You’re gonna thank the guy? You think Conor is really gonna – this is for him, this is not for you, Dustin. Relax, bro.”
Al Iaquinta’s previous comments regarding Dustin Poirier’s mindset ahead of his UFC 257 rematch with Conor McGregor clearly caught the attention of Daniel Cormier.
The former UFC champion turned ESPN analyst responding by refuting Al’s claims.
“Dustin Poirier doesn’t feel happy to be here,” Daniel Cormier said (via MMAJunkie). “I saw Al Iaquinta say something like that a while back, ‘Dustin is showing too much respect.’ But that kid, man. That kid is from Lafayette, Louisiana, and he is a dog. He’s going to fight with all of his heart. He might not win all the time, but you watch Dustin fight, he’s a nasty son of a gun, dude. And he wants to fight and he shows up. He’ll fight Conor to the best of his ability. I don’t know if he’ll win. But he will fight him hard. He’ll fight him as hard as he can.”
Do you think Dustin Poirier has already conceded defeat as suggested by Al Iaquinta, or do you believe ‘The Diamond’ will provide Conor McGregor a stiff challenge in their rematch as Daniel Cormier suggests? Share your thoughts in the comments section PENN Nation!