UFC 264: Poirier vs. McGregor 3 | Event Profile, Full Results & Legacy
- Conor McBragger
- 16 hours ago
- 7 min read
Introduction
UFC 264: Poirier vs. McGregor 3 took place on Saturday, July 10, 2021 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It was the most anticipated trilogy bout in modern UFC history, the second McGregor PPV of 2021, and the night the rivalry ended in the most graphic injury of the year. The card produced an estimated 1.8 million pay-per-view buys — the highest non-McGregor-versus-Khabib PPV of the modern era and the second-highest of 2021.
At the very end of round one, McGregor's left tibia and fibula snapped as he stepped back off the rear leg. The bone gave way under the weight transfer; he fell forward, clutching his shin. Referee Herb Dean waved the fight off at the bell. Dustin Poirier was awarded the TKO via doctor stoppage, completing a 2-1 series win over a six-and-a-half-year rivalry. The image of McGregor cursing from his back, lower leg visibly bent, became one of the most-circulated photographs in MMA history.
The co-main saw Gilbert Burns outpoint Stephen Thompson over three rounds in a competitive welterweight bout, confirming Burns's place as a top-three contender after his UFC 258 title-fight loss.
Contents
• FAQ
Quick Stats
📅 Date: Saturday, July 10, 2021
📍 Venue: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
👥 Attendance: 20,000+ (full capacity)
💰 Gate: $10.1 million (a UFC record at the time)
📺 PPV Buys: ~1,800,000
📡 Broadcast: Pay-per-view (ESPN+ in USA)
🏆 Main Event: Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor — Lightweight (155 lbs, trilogy)
✅ Result: Poirier def. McGregor via TKO (doctor stoppage, leg injury) — R1, 5:00
🥇 Co-Main: Gilbert Burns def. Stephen Thompson via Unanimous Decision (29-28 ×3) — Welterweight
The Build-Up
The trilogy bout was inevitable after UFC 257. Poirier had broken McGregor down with calf kicks in January 2021 and stopped him in round two — the first MMA KO loss of McGregor's career. The Irish star had spent the six months between fights publicly demanding the rematch, complaining about the calf-kick strategy, and pushing for a definitive third meeting. The UFC obliged.
The pre-fight cycle was the most contentious McGregor had been in for years. He insulted Poirier's wife at the pre-fight press conference, threw a kick during the staredown, and openly cursed at his rival from the dais. Poirier remained measured. He had been at this point in his career before — a former interim champion who had lost a title fight to Khabib at UFC 242 and bounced back — and he had nothing to prove. The full ticket-buying public packed T-Mobile Arena for the highest UFC gate in history.
Betting opened with McGregor a slight favourite (-160) despite the previous loss; by fight night the line had drifted to roughly even. The expectation was that McGregor would have built calf-kick defence into his game plan; the question was whether Poirier could find new openings.
Main Event: Poirier vs. McGregor 3
McGregor came out aggressive, throwing combinations to the head and openly trash-talking Poirier in the cage. Within the first 30 seconds, he had landed three clean shots that backed Poirier toward the cage. Poirier weathered the storm, clinched, and dragged McGregor to the canvas. From half-guard, Poirier landed sustained elbows for over a minute. McGregor's cuts opened along the brow line; he was visibly hurt.
Through the second and third minutes of the round, Poirier maintained top control. McGregor threatened a guillotine; Poirier defended. As the round wound down, both men returned to their feet and exchanged shots in the centre of the cage. At 4:59 of round one, with one second left, McGregor stepped back off his left leg to throw a counter — and the tibia broke. The bone gave way under the weight transfer; the leg buckled at the ankle. McGregor fell forward, screaming.
The round ended. The cage-side physician examined the leg in the corner and confirmed it was a compound fracture of the tibia and fibula. The fight was waved off; Poirier was awarded the TKO (doctor stoppage). McGregor spent the next 90 seconds on the canvas, leg propped against the cage, openly cursing Poirier, Poirier's wife, and the entire scene around him. The image — the Irishman on his back, lower leg visibly broken, threats to Poirier still on his lips — became one of the most-circulated photographs in modern MMA.
McGregor underwent emergency surgery the next day. The compound fracture required a titanium rod and over 17 months of rehabilitation. He would not fight again for over three years; his next bout was the UFC 309 main event against Michael Chandler in November 2024, which he lost by unanimous decision.
Co-Main Event: Burns vs. Thompson
Gilbert Burns fought a three-round welterweight chess match. After his UFC 258 title-fight loss, Burns needed a win to stay in the upper tier of welterweight contention. Stephen Thompson, the karate-style striker who had twice fought for the welterweight title, was a credibility opponent.
Burns used his wrestling to chain takedowns through every round, landed sustained ground-and-pound, and avoided the long-range exchanges Thompson wanted. Final scorecards: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28. The win confirmed Burns as a top-three welterweight contender. He would fight Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 273 in April 2022 in a Fight of the Year nominee (which Burns lost by decision).
Full Results
Main Card (Pay-Per-View)
Dustin Poirier def. Conor McGregor — TKO (doctor stoppage, leg injury) — R1, 5:00 — Lightweight
Gilbert Burns def. Stephen Thompson — Unanimous Decision (29-28 ×3) — Welterweight
Tai Tuivasa def. Greg Hardy — KO (punches) — R1, 1:07 — Heavyweight
Sean O'Malley def. Kris Moutinho — TKO (punches) — R3, 4:32 — Bantamweight
Irene Aldana def. Yana Kunitskaya — KO (punches) — R1, 4:35 — Women's Bantamweight
Preliminary Card (ESPN/ESPN+)
Niko Price def. Michel Pereira — N/A (Correction: Pereira def. Price via Unanimous Decision) — Welterweight
Carlos Condit def. Max Griffin — Unanimous Decision (29-28 ×3) — Welterweight
Jennifer Maia def. Jessica Eye — Unanimous Decision (30-27 ×3) — Women's Flyweight
Dricus du Plessis def. Trevin Giles — KO (punches) — R2, 1:09 — Middleweight
Bonuses & Awards
🥇 Performance of the Night: Tai Tuivasa — $50,000 for the first-round KO of Greg Hardy.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Sean O'Malley — $50,000 for the third-round TKO of Kris Moutinho.
🥇 Performance of the Night: Irene Aldana — $50,000 for the first-round KO of Yana Kunitskaya.
Records & Milestones
• Highest UFC gate in promotion history at the time — $10.1 million.
• Highest non-McGregor-versus-Khabib PPV of the modern era — ~1.8 million buys.
• Final Poirier-McGregor series ledger: 2-1 Poirier (1 featherweight L at UFC 178 in 2014, 1 lightweight TKO at UFC 257, 1 lightweight TKO at UFC 264).
• McGregor's compound fracture of the tibia and fibula — the most graphic main-event injury in UFC history.
• McGregor would not fight again for over three years — returning at UFC 309 in November 2024.
Legacy & Impact
UFC 264 is remembered as the night a championship-level rivalry ended in the most violent imaginable way — not by knockout, but by accumulated leg damage that culminated in a bone snapping under a routine weight transfer. The trilogy was over, and Conor McGregor's career was suspended indefinitely. The leg required surgical reconstruction with a titanium rod; the rehabilitation took 17 months. By the time McGregor was cleared to return to USADA testing in 2023, he had been away from the cage for over two years.
For Dustin Poirier, the win locked in his 2-1 series victory and positioned him for one more title shot. He fought Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title at UFC 269 in December 2021 (third-round rear-naked choke loss), then won the BMF belt against Justin Gaethje at UFC 291 in July 2023 — before losing the title to Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 in June 2024. He retired from active competition in 2024.
For McGregor, the injury was the formal turning point of his late-career arc. He returned for one fight at UFC 309 in November 2024 — a unanimous-decision loss to Michael Chandler in a main-event slot that drew approximately 1.5 million PPV buys. The Notorious era of dominance had ended at UFC 264; the post-injury era has been defined by sporadic appearances and diminishing in-cage results.
FAQ
How did McGregor break his leg?
Compound fracture of the tibia and fibula at the very end of round one. McGregor stepped back off his left rear leg to throw a counter; the bone gave way under the weight transfer, snapping at the ankle. The injury was visible in real time on the broadcast — the leg buckled and McGregor fell forward screaming. There has been ongoing debate about whether accumulated calf-kick damage from UFC 257 contributed to the weakening of the bone, but the official medical assessment was an acute traumatic fracture.
Did McGregor and Poirier ever fight again?
No. UFC 264 was the trilogy bout and the final meeting between them. Final ledger: 2-1 Poirier. The series began at UFC 178 (September 2014) at featherweight, where McGregor won by first-round TKO. The two rematched at lightweight at UFC 257 (January 2021), where Poirier won by second-round TKO. UFC 264 was the trilogy.
How long was McGregor's leg-injury recovery?
Over three years. McGregor underwent emergency surgery the day after the fight, including the insertion of a titanium rod in the tibia. The rehabilitation took 17 months. He was cleared to return to USADA testing in 2023 but did not fight again until UFC 309 in November 2024 — a unanimous-decision loss to Michael Chandler in his comeback bout.
Why was UFC 264 the highest UFC gate in history?
The $10.1 million gate reflected three factors: full-capacity T-Mobile Arena (20,000+ seats); premium pricing for McGregor main events; and a robust secondary ticket market on resale platforms. The figure stood as the all-time UFC gate record until UFC 268 in November 2021 produced a comparable number, and was eventually surpassed by UFC 285 in 2023.
Did Poirier ever win a UFC title?
Not an undisputed UFC lightweight title. Poirier held the interim UFC lightweight title in 2019 (defeating Max Holloway at UFC 236 in April 2019) but lost the unification bout to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 242 in September 2019. He won the BMF belt against Justin Gaethje at UFC 291 in July 2023 — a non-title symbolic championship. He retired from active competition in 2024 with the most respected legacy of any lightweight contender of his era.
How does UFC 264 compare to UFC 263?
UFC 264 drew approximately 1.8 million PPV buys versus UFC 263 (600,000) four weeks earlier — a tripling of the previous card. The gap reflected the unique commercial magnetism of Conor McGregor main events — a 3x premium over a comparable non-McGregor card in the same era.
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