Irishman Joe Duffy is the last man to beat Conor McGregor in a fight.
The Donegal fighter claimed victory with a first-round submission when he faced the Notorious five years ago.
Now he can continue his ascent up the lightweight ranks with a victory over Dustin Poirier on the Fight Pass prelims of UFC 195 on January 2.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkjwIZhT5hg
Duffy was watching the UFC 194 main event on Saturday and was just as surprised as everyone else at how quickly it finished.
“Obviously, nobody’s going to see it happening the way it did,” Duffy said. “I felt that Conor was going to get the knockout at some stage but I’d be lying to you if I said I saw it coming that early.
“Aldo’s style suited McGregor and I always so it going McGregor’s way. People will say that it was the mind games that led to Aldo dropping his guard but who knows?
“Maybe the whole occasion got to Jose but I don’t think so. He’s been there and done it so many times before. It was just one of those things.”
The speed of the knock-out added more fuel to the fire regarding rumours that ‘The Notorious’ is the hardest hitter in the featherweight division. Duffy felt McGregor’s famous left hand when the pair met in 2010 but the Donegal lightweight admits that he didn’t feel anything especially powerful in the Dubliner’s striking.
“I can’t say I felt the power,” Duffy said. “I definitely didn’t think it was anything different.
“He had good timing which I hadn’t experienced at that point in my career. But you have to keep in mind that I’ve fought with some of the world’s top boxers so I might have a different gauge of power in my mind.”
Judging by how Saturday night went, we’re guessing he’d have a different opinion if the two were to square off five years on.
