Overshadowed by Mcgregor : UFC Fight night 76

Conor McGregor – The man of the moment

Ufc's GO BIG event was successful in hyping a lot of upcoming fights including the highly anticipated for obvious reasons, Rousey vs Holm and Aldo vs McGregor. But as we look forward to these epic battles, we must save our attention for the UFC fight nights. In that fixture, Poirier vs Duffy is the one fight that many hardcore fans, including myself, will be looking forward to. And there are ample amount of reasons why you should too.

There are a couple of interesting angles to this fight. First and foremost, both the fighters are no amateurs. Poirier has been grinding it out in both featherweight and recently lightweight division for a long time.

Duffy on the other hand also has firsthand experience with the ins and outs of the fight business. To climb up the ranks now and earn their title shots would be a major priority for both men since none of them would want to throw away the opportunity of a successful headlining act in Dublin, a growing mixed martial arts hub.

Another angle is the obvious McGregor effect on this fight, The Notorious is now being used to sell a card on which he is not even fighting. His quote "We are not here to take part, we are here to take over" has become somewhat of a national slogan for the Irish.

The only time Poirier was stopped in a fight

Joe Duffy is now being addressed as the "Last man to defeat Conor McGregor". Although he seems to be indifferent towards his newfound moniker, there's no doubt a rematch would definitely be on the back of his mind.

And so would be Poirier's wish. "The Diamond" has won his last two via first round knockouts and it seems he learnt his lesson after facing Mcgregor.

Duffy is relatively inexperienced inside the octagon but is still a force to be reckoned with. He's a truly complete mixed martial artist as his credentials speak for them self. An undefeated boxing career, a black belt in taekwondo and a black belt in Japanese jiu-jitsu. The man really is the complete package.

Dustin Poirier, on the other hand, is no slouch either is a crafty striker with a lot of heart and is always a tough fight for anyone in his weight class.,

Although Duffy has defeated Conor in the past via submission in just 38 seconds, he knows that the bout took place more than 4 years ago and things have changed a lot ever since. Mcgregor has improved but so has Duffy. Duffy displays a stoic calm much like his former adversary but minus the bling and the trash talk.

Duffy is one fighter you must look out for

Amidst all this talk about Duffy and Mcgregor facing each other again, somewhere the spotlight misses Poirier. The UFC has solidified the Irish invasion angle even more by adding a young and upcoming flyweight fighter Paddy Holohan to the card.

Even if one would not want to get invested in the emotions and background behind the fight, you have to admit, this is undoubtedly one of the factors that would want anyone to tune into this fight.

Apart from that, stylistically, it is a very interesting match since Duffy has never faced a striker like Poirier in his UFC career which is still in its infancy. On the other hand, it is a very important fight for Poirier as the word is out that his striking game and footwork are improving at an enormous pace.

An amazing match up coupled with the fact that the arena will be fuelled with passionate Irish fans, it'll be fascinating to see whether the crowd will go nuts as it used to, or will Poirier be able to silence the crowd and critics. It is a tough call to make at UFC fight night 76: Poirier vs Duffy.