McGregor: I looked though Poirier’s soul, he’s a broken man
Conor McGregor on Dustin Poirier: “I definitely saw a broken man. I could look through his soul when I looked into that man’s eye… he was broken.”
UFC featherweight Conor McGregor fights Dustin Poirier on the main card of UFC 178 on September 27, live on PPV.
Poirier holds the division record for wins and stoppages, but in an interview with Mike Bohn for MMAJunkie, McGregor was dismissive. Poirier and McGregor stood toe to toe for photographers during the UFC 178 media tour, and the Irishman said he saw into Poirier’s soul and was not impressed.
I definitely saw a broken man, said McGregor said. I could look through his soul when I looked into that man’s eyes. He’s been speaking his bit, but as I said before: Face-to-face, man-to-man, he was broken. It was as simple as that.
The performance will prove that because once the cage door closes and the lights go down, you can’t hide. There’s nowhere to run, there’s nowhere to hide. It will come out on Sept. 27 that what I’m saying is true.
I don’t believe he’s a step up or the best guy I’ve ever fought. I look in the mirror and that’s the best guy I’ve ever fought. For me, this fight seems easy.
He’s a journeyman fighter, and that’s what I see. He doesn’t impress me at all. I believe he’s a basic fighter, he throws basic shots, and in my eyes he’s a journeyman. It’s that simple.
I don’t dislike anybody – this is business at the end of the day. It can be cruel, it can be ruthless, but it is never personal. I don’t ever fight with emotion. I can enter cold, calm and collected. That is it. He might have a dislike toward me, but ultimately that is not my problem.
I believe it’s a first-round stoppage. I’m only scratching the surface here and I feel like I’m at that next level again – executing that flawless performance.
I definitely believe the belt is within grasp. Personally, I don’t give a s–- what way (Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes at UFC 179) goes down. I’ll whoop them both at the same time.
I believe (the UFC) is going to be under a lot of pressure to give me that title shot. Really, I don’t think they want to deny me the title shot, anyway. I believe they want me to have that belt. So Sept. 27, I’ll go in there and handle my business and prove that I’m ready for the belt. It’s time.
