- Dustin Poirier won by TKO (doctor stoppage) against Conor McGregor on UFC 264, but the nature of the ending left bettors confused and angry.
- 55% of the bets came in on McGregor, leaving many requesting a No Contest and a refund.
LAS VEGAS – The trilogy fight between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier ending in a somewhat anti-climatic fashion in McGregor suffering an injury in the first round. This resulted in many bettors confused and upset about McGregor being given a loss.
Should Bettors Get A Refund?
To settle the debate right away, absolutely not. Injuries, unfortunately, happen all the time in MMA which results in a fighter being unable to continue and they have never been deemed a no contest.
If online gambling sites were to offer a refund on McGregor bets, they would be in unprecedented territory.
Some notable times that injuries resulted in the stoppage of the fight are Anderson Silva breaking his leg and Chris Weidman doing the same not too long ago. Both were given losses.
McGregor is able to bend some rules here and there due to his level of star power, but when Bruce Buffer reads that Poirier has won by TKO, there’s no reason as to why sports betting sites would give a refund to those who bet on McGregor.
The Impact Of The Stoppage
McGregor entered the ring as an underdog for just the third time in his UFC career and thus garnered many bettors’ attention with sportsbooks reporting 55% of bets coming in on the former UFC champion.
However, not only were McGregor moneyline bettors unfortunate, but also the Over 1.5 round bettors as well as the method of victory prop bettors.
People can argue that they got unlucky, but the sorry truth is that this isn’t the first time an injury ended the fight and it surely will not be the last. Nobody was robbed of their winnings.
What’s Next?
For Poirier, he has the option of waiting for McGregor to heal and fight for the fourth time, or go and compete for the UFC Lightweight Championship. Poirier reportedly turned down the title fight in order to fight McGregor and will likely not pass up on the opportunity again as he has little left in the division aside from winning the belt.
For McGregor, it’s tough to say what comes next. However, he certainly has options.
Although he has noticeably regressed over the past five years he remains the biggest MMA star and arguably the biggest draw in all of combat sports. He could box against Manny Pacquiao or Jake Paul or he could return to the octagon.
Either way, he has a tough road to recovery ahead and will likely have another large payday in whatever he decides to do.