UFC 178 is officially stacked. The world’s leading MMA promotion officially announced on Tuesday evening that featherweight contenders Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier have agreed to fight each other, and the pair’s grudge match will take place at UFC 178, which is set for September 27 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The bout will be a part of the event’s stacked main card, which is headlined by the rematch between UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and No. 1 contender Alexander Gustafsson. McGregor vs. Poirier is an excellent matchup between two of the youngest and most dangerous fighters in the UFC featherweight division and the winner of the bout will likely jump into the top five and only be one win away from a potential title shot at 145lbs. A member of American Top Team, Poirier is 8-2 overall in the UFC and he is currently riding a three-fight win streak, with finishes over Akira Corassani and Diego Brandao and a decision over Erik Koch. He is a very well-rounded fighter with great striking and terrific submissions, and he makes a dangerous opponent for anyone in the UFC featherweight division. At only 25 years of age, Poirier is still improving rapidly and could definitley be fighting for the title in the near future if he continues to win his fights. As for McGregor, the Irishman is 3-0 in the UFC so far with knockouts of Brandao and Marcus Brimage and a decision over Max Holloway. McGregor’s hype train is out of control after the knockout win over Brandao at UFC Fight Night 46, but he has definitely lived up to the expectations so far and the hype seems to be fair for the most part. But until he beats a top 10 opponent, there will still be question marks surrounding him, which is why the UFC made a great choice in booking this grudge match against Poirier, who McGregor has talked smacked about in the media on numerous occasions. As for the odds, McGregor will more than likely be a decent-sized favorite here due to all the hype surrounding the Irishman, but this is a competitive matchup that Poirier can definitely win. With the addition of McGregor vs. Poirier, UFC 178 is officially stacked. Right now, the prospective main card looks like this:
- Jon Jons vs. Alexander Gustafsson 2 (for UFC light heavyweight title)
- Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor *not confirmed as co-main event yet
- Dominick Cruz vs. Takeya Mizugaki
- Cat Zingano vs. Amanda Nunes
- Tim Kennedy vs. Yoel Romero
That’s definitely one of the best main cards the UFC has put together all year long, and if the lineup remains intact, UFC 178 has the potential to be one of the best events of the year in mixed martial arts.