UFC free fight: Conor McGregor makes quick work of Dustin Poirier

Conor McGregor passed the sternest test of his early career rise with flying colors.

Making a quick leap up the featherweight ranks, McGregor met battle-tested Dustin Poirier at UFC 178 in September 2014.

The brash McGregor played his usual mind games leading up to the fight, and it was evident that he got in Poirier’s head. It didn’t take long for him to back up his bold prediction, either, taking it right to Poirier from the start.

McGregor came out loose and confident, throwing an array of strikes, from a spinning back kick to his patented left hand. Less than two minutes into the fight, McGregor clipped Poirier behind his ear with a big left and followed up with some ground and pound until the referee stopped the fight.

Poirier would exact his revenge in the rematch by knocking McGregor out almost six years later at UFC 257, setting up the highly anticipated trilogy bout.

McGregor (22-5 MMA, 10-3 UFC) takes on Poirier (27-6 MMA, 19-5 UFC) in that key rubber match on July 10 in the headliner of UFC 264 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Before they square off for a third time, relive McGregor’s finish of Poirier in the video above.