Dustin Poirier defeated Conor McGregor in the main event of UFC 257 last Saturday, and thus far, most technical analysis of the win can be summed up in two words – “calf kicks.” However, World MMA Awards strength & conditioning coach of the year 2020 Phil Daru appeared recently on MMA Junkie Radio, and attributed the win to the ability to move properly, particularly on the inside. 

I was happy with his ability to maintain his posture, maintain his positioning, explained Daru. Especially on the cage with Conor, putting the pressure on him, making sure that he doesn’t get turned around a lot. What we really were working on was his ability to move, to stay in the pocket, but also to fire off shots and move efficiently inside the cage. We knew that was going to be something that – Conor is definitely an explosive athlete, he’s powerful, he definitely has one-shot knockout power.

So our ability to move inside the pocket, get away from shots and then fire off efficiently and then move around the cage so you don’t get hit with a counter, and then on top of that, put the pressure on him, get the takedown and then be able to control his body inside close quarters was really what we were focusing on from a physical standpoint.

The guy has been through wars. He’s fought forever, so as a physical preparation coach, I’m looking to enhance movement quality, I’m looking to work on his ability to move in space, and then just work on deficiencies and dysfunctions that have been brought upon through injuries and things of that nature. Things with his hip, working on different rotations, and getting him into proper positioning to be strong and work his skillset appropriately, now that he has better range of motion to do so.

h/t Farah Hannoun for MMA Junkie