A lightweight fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier is looking to be added to a January 23rd pay-per-view event. Should the fight be booked, it would be on UFC 257, per a report from Damon Martin of MMA Fighting.
Per a report from Ariel Helwani of ESPN, UFC President Dana White says the fight would take place on “Fight Island.”
ESPN says the fight has been signed by Poirier, although a contract has not yet been signed by McGregor.
The development of the fight comes after weeks of both Poirier and McGregor rallying for the bout on social media.
The fight would be McGregor’s return to action after announcing his retirement from “fighting” in June.
McGregor last fought in January, defeating Donald Cerrone in under a minute with strikes.
Poirier fought for the UFC Lightweight Championship in 2019, losing a fight to Khabib Nurmagomedov. He returned to action with a win in June, defeating Dan Hooker via decision.
The first meeting between Poirier and McGregor dates back to 2014, where McGregor won in the second minute via punches. The win was McGregor’s fourth in the UFC, as part of a campaign which put him into the title picture.
Three previous fights were reported for the UFC’s January 23rd card. Here’s the lineup.
Bout 4: Dustin Poirier (26-6) vs. Conor McGregor (22-4) (Lightweight)
Bout 3: Jessica Eye (15-8) vs. Joanne Calderwood (14-5) (Flyweight)
Bout 2: Michelle Waterson (18-8) vs. Amanda Ribas (10-1) (Strawweight)
Bout 1: Brad Tavares (17-6) vs. Antonio Carlos Junior (10-4) (Middleweight)