Petr Yan says Conor McGregor looked ‘fat and old’ during his defeat to Dustin Poirier at UFC 257

Conor McGregor looked ‘fat and old’ during his shock defeat to Dustin Poirier at UFC 257, says bantamweight champion Petr Yan

  • Conor McGregor was knocked out by Dustin Poirier in his first fight in a year
  • The defeat virtually ended McGregor’s hopes of a rematch with Khabib
  • Petr Yan is set to defend his title against Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 on March 6
  • Yan has also indicated that he’s open to fighting former champion TJ Dillashaw 

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan criticised Conor McGregor‘s performance against Dustin Poirier, claiming he looked ‘fat and old’ after the Irishman lost on his return to the Octagon. 

After a year away from fighting, McGregor was knocked out in the second round by Poirier in the main event of UFC 257 last weekend.

The ‘Notorious’ had a strong first round, however his conditioning failed him in the second and Poirier’s devastating leg kicks limited McGregor’s mobility; allowing the American to take advantage and take the TKO victory.

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan criticised Conor McGregor’s performance at UFC 257

Dustin Poirier (left) defeated Conor McGregor (right) in a rematch of their original 2014 bout

Dustin Poirier (left) defeated Conor McGregor (right) in a rematch of their original 2014 bout

Speaking to James Lynch of Fanatics View, Yan was asked for his opinion on the Irishman’s performance and the Russian didn’t pull any punches when it came to his assessment.  

‘Yeah, I saw that Conor became fat and old,’ he said through his interpreter. 

The devastating fashion in which McGregor lost virtually ended any plans of a potential rematch with recently retired lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. 

McGregor's defeat at UFC 257 shelved any hopes of a rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov

McGregor’s defeat at UFC 257 shelved any hopes of a rematch with Khabib Nurmagomedov

The ‘Eagle’ submitted the Irishman in the main event of UFC 229 in October 2018 and McGregor has been obsessed with avenging that defeat ever since.

Khabib had said before last weekend’s UFC 257 that he would consider fighting again if he saw something ‘spectacular’ at the event.

Meanwhile Yan, is set to take on Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 on March 6.

The Russian also stated if he wins that bout, he’d be open to fighting former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillasahaw in the future.