[007]Biden has promised to reform Social Security

We’ve had two events and 24 UFC fights in the past six days and yet still, you can sense that there’s another level of anticipation for Saturday’s UFC 257 card headlined by Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor. It’s a rematch six years in the making and even if it wasn’t, you’d still have two of the most compelling fighters in the business facing off.

Poirier lost to McGregor the first time around, then jumped up to 155 pounds and he’s never looked back. Why would he? “The Diamond” has been a force in the UFC’s deepest division, building his resume against quality competition before bumping off stars like Max Holloway, Eddie Alvarez, Justin Gaethje, and Anthony Pettis. He earned himself an interim title, which may not have made him the best lightweight in the world, but he was pretty damn close.

McGregor’s tale is well-chronicled, but his sporting accomplishments are still extraordinary even at a glance. After defeating Poirier, McGregor went on to win two UFC titles, knock off featherweight great Jose Aldo in 13 seconds, headline the UFC’s first-ever visit to Madison Square Garden, battle Nate Diaz in the most lucrative feud in MMA history, and, oh yeah, coax a big-money boxing match out of Floyd Mayweather.

They’ve done well for themselves since that first fight, is what I’m saying.

Somehow, none of that matters and yet so much of it matters as they prepare to fight a second time. The rematch has been dissected every which way: Will the first loss motivate Poirier or cause him to doubt himself? Does McGregor still have the fire to compete against a top-five contender or does he already have one foot out the door as he has in the past? Should they be fighting for a vacant lightweight title with Khabib Nurmagomedov thus far sticking to his retirement, or does the looming shadow of “The Eagle” make it impossible for the division to move on?

And so we’re left with anticipation and the sneaking suspicion that regardless of who wins, we could be left with just as many questions as answers.

The co-main event sees Dan Hooker signing up for the golden opportunity to shut down Michael Chandler before he even gets a chance to get going in the UFC. A three-time Bellator lightweight champion, Chandler finally gets to prove that he hasn’t just been the biggest fish in a smaller pond, and given his resume a convincing win against Hooker could vault him right into the thick of the UFC’s lightweight title picture.

In other main card action, one-time flyweight title challenger Jessica Eye meets Joanne Calderwood in a matchup with plenty of bad blood, The Ultimate Fighter 23 champion Andrew Sanchez tries to snap the 13-fight win streak of Makhmud Muradov in a middleweight bout, and strawweights Marina Rodriguez and Amanda Ribas look to continue their climb up the top-10 ladder.

What: UFC 257

Where: Yas Island in Abu Dhabi

When: Saturday, Jan. 23. The early prelims begin with a pair of fights exclusively on ESPN+ at 7 p.m. ET. A four-fight preliminary card follows at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN+. The pay-per-view main card begins at 10 p.m. ET and is available to watch through ESPN+.

Conor McGregor Is Back!

Former UFC champion headlines UFC 257 - LIVE HERE - on Fight Island.
WATCH LIVE STREAM HERE
Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor
Everything we’ve seen from Dustin Poirier in his last dozen fights or so tell us that he’s a much better fighter at 32 than he was at 25. He’s smarter, tougher, his boxing is better. He knows what it takes to be a champion.