Another chapter in the long story of UFC trilogy fights takes place Saturday at UFC 264.
Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor will clash for a third and likely final time – 2,483 days after they first fought at UFC 178 in September 2014.
McGregor (22-5 MMA, 10-3 UFC) won the initial meeting by first-round TKO. In the rematch more than six years later, Poirier (27-6 MMA, 19-5 UFC) got redemption with a second-round TKO at UFC 257 in January.
Now the two lightweight contenders will compete one final time in the winner-takes-all rubber match.
It will be the 14th trilogy fight in company history, and ahead of UFC 264, we rank the others that have happened so far. Check out our list below, from worst to best.
Tito Ortiz def. Ken Shamrock (3-0)
Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock at UFC 40 (via AP)
UFC 40: Nov. 22, 2002 – Ortiz via third-round TKO
UFC 61: July 8, 2006 – Ortiz via first-round TKO
UFC Fight Night 6.5: Oct. 10, 2006 – Ortiz via first-round TKO
SIGNIFICANCE: The first trilogy in UFC history to end in a 3-0 sweep.
Randy Couture def. Vitor Belfort (2-1)
Randy Couture vs. Vitor Belfort at UFC 46 (via UFC Fight Pass)
UFC 15: Oct. 17, 1997 – Couture via first-round TKO
UFC 46: Jan. 31, 2004 – Belfort via first-round TKO
UFC 49: Aug. 21, 2004 – Couture via third-round TKO
SIGNIFICANCE: Couture’s trilogy win to claim the light heavyweight title made him the first (and still only) fighter in UFC history with multiple title reigns in two divisions.
Frankie Edgar def. B.J. Penn (3-0)
Frankie Edgar vs. B.J. Penn at UFC 112 (via Imagn)
UFC 112: Aprl 10, 2010 – Edgar via unanimous decision
UFC 118: Aug. 28, 2010 – Edgar via unanimous decision
The Ultimate Fighter 19 Finale: July 6, 2014 – Edgar via third-round TKO
SIGNIFICANCE: Penn is the only fighter in UFC history to come out on the losing end of multiple trilogies.
Charles Oliveira def. Nik Lentz (2-0 with 1 no contest)
Charles Oliveira vs. Nik Lentz at UFC on ESPN+ 10 (via Imagn)
UFC on VERSUS 4: June 26, 2011 – No contest due to an illegal knee
UFC Fight Night 67: May 30, 2015 – Oliveira via third-round submission
UFC Fight Night 152: May 18, 2019 – Oliveira via second-round TKO
SIGNIFICANCE: The 2,883 days between first and third fights are the most for any trilogy.
Tim Sylvia def. Andrei Arlovski (2-1)
Andrei Arlovski vs. Tim Sylvia at UFC 51 (via Getty)
UFC 51: Feb. 5, 2005 – Arlovski via first-round submission
UFC 59: April 15, 2006 – Sylvia via first-round TKO
UFC 61: July 8, 2006 – Sylvia via unanimous decision
SIGNIFICANCE: The 84 days between the second and third fights is the shortest turnaround between two bouts for any trilogy in UFC history.
Forrest Griffin def. Tito Ortiz (2-1)
Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz at UFC 148 (via Imagn)
UFC 59: April 15, 2006 – Ortiz via split decision
UFC 106: Nov. 21, 2009 – Griffin via split decision
UFC 148: July 7, 2012 – Griffin via unanimous decision
SIGNIFICANCE: The first trilogy in UFC history with all non-title bouts and the first consisting of multiple “Fight of the Night” winning bouts.
Cain Velasquez def. Junior Dos Santos (2-1)
Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos at UFC 155 (via Imagn)
UFC on FOX 1: Nov. 12, 2011 – Dos Santos via first-round knockout
UFC 155: Dec. 29, 2012 – Velasquez via unanimous decision
UFC 166: Oct. 19, 2013 – Velasquez via fifth-round TKO
SIGNIFICANCE: Dos Santos’ 64-second victory in the first fight is the quickest win to open a trilogy in UFC history.
Sam Stout def. Spencer Fisher (2-1)
Sam Stout vs. Spencer Fisher at UFC on FX 4 (via Imagn)
UFC 58: March 4, 2006 – Stout via split decision
UFC Fight Night 10: June 12, 2007 – Fisher via unanimous decision
UFC on FX 4: June 22, 2012 – Stout via unanimous decision
SIGNIFICANCE: The only trilogy in UFC history with athletes who have never fought for or held a championship with the promotion.
B.J. Penn def. Matt Hughes (2-1)
B.J. Penn vs. Matt Hughes at UFC 123 (via AP)
UFC 46: Jan. 31, 2004 – Penn via first-round submission
UFC 63: Sept. 23, 2006 – Hughes via third-round TKO
UFC 123: Nov. 20, 2010 – Penn via first-round knockout
SIGNIFICANCE: Penn’s 21-second knockout of Hughes in the third fight is the fastest rubber match result of any trilogy in UFC history.
Stipe Miocic def. Daniel Cormier (2-1)
Stipe Miocic vs. Daniel Cormier at UFC 241 (via Imagn)
UFC 226: July 7, 2018 – Cormier via first-round knockout
UFC 241: Aug. 17, 2019 – Miocic via fourth-round TKO
UFC 252: Aug. 15, 2020 – Miocic via unanimous decision
SIGNIFICANCE: Miocic became the first fighter in UFC history to fight the same opponent in three consecutive fights.
Georges St-Pierre def. Matt Hughes (2-1)
Georges St-Pierre vs. Matt Hughes at UFC 79 (via AP)
UFC 50: Oct. 22, 2004 – Hughes via first-round submission
UFC 65: Nov. 18, 2006 – St-Pierre via second-round TKO
UFC 79: Dec. 29, 2007 – St-Pierre via second-round submission
SIGNIFICANCE: The only trilogy in UFC history with multiple submission results.
Chuck Liddell def. Randy Couture (2-1)
Chuck Liddell vs. Randy Couture at UFC 52 (via Getty)
UFC 43: June 6, 2003 – Couture via third-round TKO
UFC 52: April 16, 2005 – Liddell via first-round knockout
UFC 57: Feb. 4, 2006 – Liddell via second-round knockout
SIGNIFICANCE: The first trilogy in UFC history in which all three fights were pay-per-view headliners.
Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard (1-1-1)
Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard at UFC 125 (via AP)
UFC Fight Night 13: April 2, 2008 – Maynard via unanimous decision
UFC 125: Jan. 1, 2011 – Fight ends in a split draw
UFC 136: Oct. 8, 2011 – Edgar via fourth-round knockout
SIGNIFICANCE: The only trilogy in UFC history to feature a draw result.
TBD: Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor (1-1)
Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier at UFC 178 (via AP)
UFC 178: Sept. 27, 2014 – McGregor via first-round TKO
UFC 257: Jan. 23, 2021 – Poirier via second-round TKO
UFC 264: July 11, 2021 – ?
This one surprised Me
I know this is mma only, but Gotti-Ward is my favorite trilogy.
ttt
Travis Fulton went 3-0 vs dan Wheatley in their FIRST trilogy.
Travis Fulton went 3-0 vs Dan Wheatley in their SECOND trilogy.
I’ll leave the Travis Fulton prison jokes to those more creative and witty than yours truly.