McGregor urges retired Poirier to take public drunkenness arrest 'with absolute seriousness'

Conor McGregor has called on retired rival Dustin Poirier to confront his recent struggles head-on, warning his former opponent not to dismiss a public drunkenness arrest at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in late June as something trivial.

Speaking on Smash Cast alongside hosts Chael Sonnen and Ian Parker, McGregor was asked directly about the incident in which Poirier was filmed heavily intoxicated at the airport and subsequently arrested on a misdemeanour charge. The Irishman paused before responding with a phrase that framed his entire answer: “Karma is a mirror.”

“It’s not good to see,” McGregor said. “If I was to say something to him, I would say: take this with absolute seriousness. Do not engage with people. There’s people [that would say], ‘it was funny, I like him more,’ and you see [them] start laughing about it and maybe you wonder, ‘maybe it wasn’t so bad. Maybe I’ll keep going.’ And then the next one’s worse, and then you slip deeper and deeper.”

McGregor, who faced Poirier three times — losing the trilogy bout in 2021 — did not confine himself to sympathy. He took aim at Poirier’s admission that he had begun using performance-enhancing drugs in retirement, noting the decision struck him as misguided and that the physical results had raised further concerns. “For him to retire and go on steroids for no reason, I found that stupid. And then also, his body didn’t look any different… alarm belts went off in my head,” McGregor said.

He also addressed reports that Poirier had attributed some of his difficulties to his father, pushing back firmly on that framing. “You have to take accountability as a man, that’s it,” McGregor said.

Despite the pointed remarks, McGregor closed on a note of genuine goodwill toward his former rival, who has spoken openly about the difficulties of adjusting to life outside competitive fighting. “It’s not my business. And for the sake of his family and children, and his new child born, I hope he comes right.”

Poirier officially retired following a career that included two victories over McGregor and a lightweight title fight against Charles Oliveira. The wider conversation on Smash Cast also touched on McGregor’s potential return to welterweight and the possibility of a rematch with Floyd Mayweather.