and Carrick nearly prov

[jinshuiqian0713]

Hillbilly. Grew up in a circus. Little pea head. Weak chin.Dustin (Diamond) Poirier has heard it all from (The Notorious) Conor McGregor in the buildup to UFC 178 on Saturday.Ive never disliked somebody that much ever before, Poirier said to one of his teammates this week after running into McGregor at a Las Vegas hotel in a meeting captured by UFC cameras.McGregor (15-2) is a charismatic Dubliner with a gift of the gab. Ranked ninth among 145-pound contenders, the Irish featherweight has won all three of his UFC fights including a first-round KO of Diego Brandao last time out in the main event of a wildly successful televised show in his hometown.No. 5 Poirier (16-3) is a soft-spoken Louisiana native who has moved to Florida to train with American Top Team. He has a deeper record than McGregor, having won eight of 10 bouts in the UFC.And on Saturday, he will serve as a five-foot-nine, 145-pound measuring stick for McGregor.Social media or my phone is blowing up every day, said Poirier. Hundreds of messages every day. A lot of people want to see this fight and they have a good reason to.McGregors sharp barbs seem to have got under Poiriers skin despite his best efforts to turn the other cheek. UFC boss Dana White had to separate the two when they faced off Thursday at a media gathering, with Poirier heading towards McGregor at full steam.McGregor, 26, is predicting a first-round knockout, with a title shot to follow. Although he tweeted this week: Ive decided Im going to toy with him.Thats a step back from earlier McGregor Twitter boasts such as In 3 weeks I raise his decapitated head in glory.Poirier says he is just being myself by trying not to respond to McGregors long list of taunts. But the southern gentleman approach does not mean he is not taking notice.I want to get up and smack him around at press conferences when hes running his mouth. But Im a professional. Ill let him run of his mouth, Poirier said in an interview. I feel like he might have some insecurities if he needs to talk that much. Im not trying to prove anything to people with running my mouth. It doesnt make sense to me. I think hes doing it to make himself believe in himself. I dont know, some guys might need that. Personally I know who I am, as the man and a fighter.Thats what Im looking to. Im not looking forward to press conferences. Im looking forward to Saturday the 27th when I get to put my hands on him.Fridays weigh-in offered another taste of the mayhem to come with McGregor, who came on stage first, edging toward the scales as Poirier stepped on them. White moved over to pull McGregor away.Both fighters were clearly amped up and White moved in quickly after Poirier stepped off the scales and headed towards McGregor. The fighters jawed at each other as others helped keep them apart.Saturdays main event was to have been a bad blood title bout between light-heavyweight champion Jon (Bones) Jones and Daniel Cormier. But Jones was injured in training, and flyweight title-holder Demetrious (Mighty Mouse) Johnson and Chris (Kamikaze) Cariaso took over the main event.The popular Donald (Cowboy) Cerrone, ranked No. 5 among lightweight contenders, faces No. 14 Eddie Alvarez, a former Bellator champion, in the co-main event at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.Poirier-McGregor is the third fight on the main card although many — including McGregor — see it as the marquee matchup of the night.Poirier is a smart, high-energy fighter. McGregor is a fine counter-puncher who uses an array of prickly kicks to keep his opponent off balance.The bookies have made the abrasive McGregor as high as a 3-1 favourite.As for McGregors jibe at a UFC 178 media day in August that his opponent is a quiet little hillbilly from the backass of nowhere, Poirier notes that he went to the same high school as Cormier, who gets his title shot in January.A lot of guys came out of this area: Melvin Guillard, Rich Clementi, Tim Credeur. Just to name a few. The 25-year-old Poirier moved to Florida to expand his training options after losing to Chan Sung Jung — better known as the Korean Zombie — in May 2012. He has won four of five since, with the lone blemish a decision loss to Cub Swanson. Poirier has won his last three, beating Akira Corassani, Brandao and Erik Koch.Poirier believes McGregor is a self-promoter who has talked his way up the ladder.I built where Im at with my bare hands, said Poirier. That feels good to know. When I go to sleep at night, I know that and I feel good and Im happy about it.The Lafayette native, featured in the documentary Fightville, is totally committed to his own title dream.In a 2011 interview with The Canadian Press, Fightville co-director Michael Tucker recalled sharing a hotel room with the fighter at a film festival and seeing the fighter put on an oxygen monitor before going to sleep.He actually shoved tubes up his nose while he was sleeping so that his oxygen levels could be monitored, so that a custom-made breathing apparatus can be made, so while hes sleeping, his muscles are replenished correctly, Tucker said.Poirier believes McGregor has met his match. Now hes put himself into a very serious situation ... Im excited. Its going to be fun to reveal the guys true person.McGregor seems unconcerned and punctuates his UFC 178 trail with Twitter one-liners. The former apprentice plumber loves the spotlight.I am in Sin City. Armed and dangerous. I am going to school this kid.I work hard and fight easy.I show up prepared to kill. Everytime.I love my job, what can I say. I beat people up for truck loads of cash.Predicted Poirier: When you look back at it, the jokes on him.———Follow @NeilMDavidson on Twitter Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . The Brazilian international goalkeeper was beaten twice in the first 12 minutes of his Reds debut in a 3-1 preseason loss to Columbus Crew in Florida earlier this week. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . Fifth-seeded Cilic gained his fourth title in Zagreb and became the third Croat overall to win at least 10 career titles. Cilic also lifted his career record in Zagreb to 22-4, winning 20 of his last 21 matches at the event. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . Johns, N.L., to Thunder Bay, Ont., after a deal was announced to build a new $106-million "event centre" in the Lake Superior community. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . - Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Jason Babin is now a free agent.HAMILTON, Ont. -- Drew MacIntyre did everything asked of a veteran goaltender Friday night. The 30-year-old didnt need to be spectacular, but made 24 saves as the Marlies defeated the Hamilton Bulldogs 3-1 in American Hockey League play. "There was no show-stopping save tonight," said Marlies head coach Steve Spott. "We did a very good job in front of (MacIntyre) tonight, but when he had to be good he was. "He handled the puck well behind the net, he was vocal and controlled the game and he made the job easy for us defensively." The Marlies were responsible in their own end and opportunistic in attack, which led to their coach being more than pleased with the overall effort. "That was probably our best effort of the year," said Toronto head coach Steve Spott. "I think that from the first puck drop to the final whistle, it was our most complete game to date." Jerry DAmigo, David Broll and Sam Carrick scored for the Marlies (11-7-1). Gabriel Dumont had the lone goal for the Bulldogs (9-9-3). Robert Mayer made 26 saves in a losing effort. The games first clear scoring chance fell to the Bulldogs six minutes into the opening period, just as Steve Quailer was whistled for tripping. With the Marlies regrouping in the neutral zone, Dumont jumped into a passing lane and stole the puck, racing in for a shorthanded breakaway on MacIntyre. He shifted to his backhand, but couldnt manage a shot on goal with John-Michael Liles checking his stick. A momentary lapse of concentration in the defensive zone cost Hamilton the first goal of the night at 13:03 of the first period. Torontos Josh Leivo took possession of the puck behind the goal line, and slid a short pass to the unguarded DAmigo in the low slot. The winger easily pplaced a wrist shot past Mayer.dddddddddddd. The Marlies struck early in the second period to double their lead on a power play, after the Bulldogs Jarred Tinordi was whistled for delay of game. With the penalty winding down, Broll took possession of the puck along the left boards and spotted Mayer deep in his crease, releasing a quick wrist shot that took the goaltender by surprise and beat him just inside his far post at 3:17 of the second period. Dumont brought Hamilton within a goal just 41 seconds later. He took the puck at the top of the right circle, and with no defender ready to meet him, drove the net alone. The winger deked past one defenceman before going wide around another and sliding a backhanded shot past MacIntyre. Hamiltons momentum proved to be short-lived, however, as Toronto restored its two-goal lead at 5:57 of the second period. Another missed assignment in the defensive zone allowed Carrick to drift into the slot unguarded, and Spencer Abbott found him with a pass from the right boards. Carrick dropped to one knee and one-timed the puck past Mayer at the near post. Toronto was pressing for a fourth goal early in the third period, and Carrick nearly provided that insurance five minutes in. A deflection bounced to him in the slot, and Mayer produced one of his best saves of the night to swat away Carricks wrist shot with his glove. MacIntyre argued that his teams positive start to the third was crucial, desperate as the Bulldogs were for an early goal. "They were coming for us and they didnt stop coming," he said. "We knew that and thats what we were saying after the second period. "We had a great start to the third, and we needed that because we didnt want to give Hamilton life with a goal." ' ' '