UFC 178: JONES VS. GUSTAFSSON 2 Date: September 27, 2014 Location: Las Vegas, Nevada Venue: MGM Grand Garden Arena Broadcast: PPV UFC Featherweight Conor McGregor (-170) A character who backs up his trash talking with vicious knockouts inside the cage, Conor McGregor (15-2) has taken the MMA world by storm and is a bonafide star now. After winning the 145lb and 155lb titles in Cage Warriors, McGregor was signed to the UFC and has since gone 3-0 with knockout wins over Marcus Brimage and Diego Brandao and a decision win over Max Holloway. He has shown tremendous boxing skills in all of his fights, but he’s also shown some solid wrestling and it really does look like he’s a complete fighter. After talking his way into the top 10, McGregor finally fought a dance partner amongst the contenders in the form of Dustin Poirier, who took offence to McGregor’s trash talk, and the two will meet at UFC 178 in what is one one the most highly-anticipated non-title fights of 2014 in MMA. UFC Featherweight Dustin Poirier (+130) Profile: At only 25 years old and already a complete fighter, Dustin Poirier (16-3) is a featherweight who will have a long career in the UFC. His work ethic, superb ground game and strong striking skills make him a danger no matter where the fight goes. Poirier may be young, but he is experienced and has beaten solid competition, going 8-2 in the UFC overall, and since moving to American Top Team in Florida he has been especially strong. He is currently riding a three-fight win streak over Akira Corassani, Diego Brandao and Erik Koch, including brutal stoppages over Corassani and Brandao, and is nearing a title shot at 145lbs. After Conor McGregor talked trash about him in the media, Poirier called him out and the UFC decided to book the matchup for UFC 178, and it’s going to be one of the biggest grudge matches of 2014 when it goes down. Opening UFC 178 Analysis: MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas made McGregor a -170 favorite (bet $170 to win $100) while Poirier opened as a +130 underdog (bet $100 to win $130) at Several Bookmakers. A few hours before Several Bookmakers opened the line, Several Bookmakers.eu opened Poirier as a -225 favorite and McGregor as a +190 underdog, which was a bit surprising to many bettors, but the line definitely created a buzz. This is one of the biggest grudge matches in MMA and the UFC decided to add it to the undercard of UFC 178 to stack the deck and make it one of the biggest PPV events of the year. McGregor has lived up to the hype, going 3-0 in the UFC with brutal finishes of Marcus Brimage and Diego Brandao and a decision win over Max Holloway. But Poirier, who is 8-2 overall in the UFC, is a huge step up in competition and it remains to be seen how McGregor will do in the fight. Although McGregor has one of the best striking attacks at 145lbs, Poirier is also very dangerous on the feet and he has a huge edge in the submissions department. So if the fight goes to the ground, then Poirier has a chance to pull off the upset. But if it stays standing, which is most likely will, then McGregor will have the edge, and that’s why he opens up as a decent-sized favorite for the pair’s grudge match this fall.
