Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier have spent years trading punches inside the Octagon, but after Poirier’s recent arrest for public drunkenness, the former two-division UFC champion says his longtime rival needs to treat the incident as a serious wake-up call.
Poirier, who retired from MMA earlier this year, was arrested following an alcohol-related incident at an airport. Video of an altercation involving police and airline employees quickly circulated online before the former interim lightweight champion publicly apologized and vowed to work on himself.
McGregor, who returns to action against Max Holloway at UFC 329, said he hopes Poirier follows through on that promise. Appearing on the Smash Cast podcast, McGregor said the biggest mistake Poirier could make would be minimizing what happened.
“Karma is a mirror,” McGregor said. “It’s not good. It’s not good to see.”
McGregor warned that public support or jokes about the incident could make it easier to ignore the underlying problem.
“If I was to say something to him, I would say, take this with absolute seriousness,” McGregor said. “Do not engage in people saying, ‘It was funny, I like him more.’ Then you start laughing about it. ‘Maybe it wasn’t so bad. Maybe I’ll keep going.’ Then the next one’s worse, and then you slip deeper and deeper.”
Concern After Retirement
McGregor acknowledged that many athletes struggle with life after retirement, and he believes the transition can become dangerous if unhealthy habits take hold.
Poirier has openly admitted that adjusting to life outside of competition has been difficult, making the recent arrest another reminder of the challenges many fighters face after stepping away from the sport.
McGregor Questions Poirier’s Post-Fighting Lifestyle
McGregor also revisited comments he made before news of the arrest became public, saying he had concerns about Poirier’s direction after retirement.
“Funny enough, I spoke with Megan Olivi. They asked me about Dustin,” McGregor said. “For him to retire and go on steroids for no reason, I found that stupid. Also, his body didn’t look any different, which had my alarm bells going off.”
He added that the recent incident should serve as motivation for Poirier to make meaningful changes.
“Take it with absolute seriousness because you don’t want to slip further and further.”
“He Has to Take Accountability”
During his own discussion of the incident, Poirier referenced how alcohol affected his father’s life and the impact it had on his family.
McGregor sympathized with the situation but believes accountability is essential moving forward.
“He has to take accountability,” McGregor said. “I seen something where he came out and blamed his father. You have to take accountability, my man.”
Despite the bitterness that has existed between the two throughout their trilogy, McGregor ended his comments on a respectful note.
“I’m not gonna go deeper. I don’t want to go into it. It’s not my business, and for the sake of his family and his children, his new child born, I hope he comes right.”
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