Dustin Poirier believes Conor McGregor should fight Justin Gaethje next when he returns to the octagon.
McGregor's last UFC outing ended in defeat against Poirier last year in their trilogy bout after breaking his leg during a ferocious opening round. This has seen McGregor inactive now for around a year, and as a result has seen him drop out of the top ten in the 155lb rankings.
After making an impressive transformation to a new ripped 190lb physique, McGregor is eyeing a switch to 170lb in a bid to become the UFC's maiden three-weight champion. And despite previous links to a fourth meeting, Poirier believes the pair have now moved on from their rivalry. "I’m probably not going to fight Conor again. I don’t really want to fight Conor again," Poirier told the DC & RC Show when asked about a fourth showdown with McGregor.
"For me, that door is closed. The only reason I’d do it is for money. I beat him two times in a row. Can I beat my two performances? Can I knock him out quicker? Can I 10-7 him? What can I do? I’ve done it. If I do it again, it’s just for money, right? So that’s a completely different thing."
Poirier when asked about who McGregor should face instead, added: "Justin Gaethje vs. the return of Conor McGregor. The hype, the build up, somebody's going to sleep. I mean, you're tuning in for a car wreck. A head-on collision and I wanna see it." Poirier is yet to find an opponent since losing in his title challenge against Charles Oliveira late last year.
Gaethje is also coming off a devastating defeat to Oliveira himself after being tapped out and missing his chance to claim the vacant title after his rival missed weight. McGregor has already had his say on Gaethje after his rival's previous defeat, tweeting: "Gaethje is a jacka**," McGregor wrote. "The amount of absolute dribble he speaks as well. Over and over. A Grade-A jacka**! A bird brain with a bird-brain manager. Two bum t**** they are. He is. A Jacka**."
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McGregor has faced a whole host of challenges since his recovery began gathering pace upon his return to training. The 34-year-old initially began just training boxing before offering fresh hope of a return this year by kicking with his previously broken leg.
It looked likely that McGregor's comeback would be delayed but the Irishman has also now returned to his MMA gym in Ireland alongside coach John Kavanagh where he has rekindled his full combat training.
Two prominent options include 155lb contender Michael Chandler who is also keen to match the Irishman at 170lb if he opts to make a switch. Jorge Masvidal has also stated his claim to a mega pay-per-view clash with McGregor despite previous fears of the significant size difference.
