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In the main event bout for UFC 257, Dustin Poirier will take on Conor McGregor Saturday live from UFC Fight Island and available on ESPN+ PPV. This is a rematch from their first fight in June 2014 at UFC 178, where McGregor defeated Poirier by Round 1 TKO.
The 32-year-old Poirier enters the octagon as the underdog, despite being ranked second in the lightweight rankings and seventh in the pound-for-pound rankings. The southpaw has a professional fighting record of 26-6 (1 NC), with his last fight taking place in June at UFC on ESPN 12. In that contest, he defeated Dan Hooker by unanimous decision.
“The Diamond” will try to not get knocked out this time around and use his grappling skills to make it through the five rounds. He averages 5.57 significant strikes per minute with 50 percent accuracy. Poirier also has 1.46 takedowns per 15 minutes and a takedown accuracy of 35 percent in the octagon.
As for McGregor, he’s back inside the octagon after retiring from the sport last year in June. “Notorious” McGregor has a professional fighting record of 22-4 and ranked 13th in the pound-for-pound rankings. The veteran fighter is also ranked fourth in the lightweight rankings.
The southpaw last fought in January 2020 at UFC 246, where he defeated Donald Cerrone within 40 seconds of the Round 1 by TKO. The 32-year-old McGregor is an aggressive fighter, who has 19 KO/TKO wins under his belt. He lands strikes at 5.43 per minute, with an accuracy of 45 percent. At the same time, McGregor takes a lot of strikes in return at 4.40 per minute, while he defends against them at 55 percent.
Here are the odds and betting splits at DraftKings Sportsbook for Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor at UFC 257 on January 23rd.
Odds and Betting splits
Dustin Poirier: +250 (19% of action, 22% of bets)
Conor McGregor: -305 (81% of action, 78% of bets)
Winning Method
Conor McGregor By Decision: +650 10% of action, 12% of bets
Conor McGregor By KO, TKO or DQ: -177 57% of action, 33% of bets
Conor McGregor By Submission: +2000 16% of action, 25% of bets
Dustin Poirier By Decision: +600 2% of action, 4% of bets
Dustin Poirier By KO, TKO or DQ: +600 6% of action, 9% of bets
Dustin Poirier By Submission: +900 5% of action, 9% of bets
Tie: +6600 3% of action, 8% of bets
DraftKings DFS Values
Dustin Poirier: $7,100
Conor McGregor: $9,100
A lot of people will want to put McGregor into their DFS lineup for Saturday night. However, do not sleep on Poirier, who is one of the cheaper valued fighters on the card. The 32-year-old is averaging 84.2 fantasy points per game and has gone over that mark in three of his last four fights.
In his last fight against Hooker, Poirier accumulated a ridiculous 153 significant strikes and a takedown. If Poirier does not get knocked out in the Round 1, then there could be a lot of value in your lineup.
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