UFC president Dana White has sent a stern warning to fight fans who plan to illegally stream Conor McGregor's return.
The Notorious will return to the octagon a fortnight on Saturday in the main event of UFC 257 in Abu Dhabi, where he'll rematch former featherweight rival Dustin Poirier.
The lightweight showdown will only be available to those who purchase the UFC's first pay-per-view card of 2021.
Some UFC fans, however, plan to save the pennies by illegally streaming the card.
One fan revealed his plan to watch Poirier vs McGregor II for free in a comment on White's recent Instagram video promoting the fight.
It read: "Can't wait to pirate the fuxk out of this thanks Dana I'm excited."
The comment quickly came to the attention of White, who issued a stark warning to all those who intend to illegally stream the event.
A post shared by Dana White (@danawhite)
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He replied: “And I can’t wait to catch u!!!. Gotta a surprise for u mother f***ers this year.”
Illegal streaming of events, in particular pay-per-view cards,is a problem the UFC has had to combat for the over a decade.
McGregor fights, in particular, are often pirated and are even live-streamed on social media apps
But judging from White's latest comments on piracy, that could soon be a thing of the past.
McGregor's showdown with Poirier will be a rematch of their meeting six years ago at UFC 178.
That night proved to be a short one at the office for The Notorious, who knocked out Poirier in just under two minutes to announce himself to the world as a legitimate featherweight title contender.
And the Irishman's striking coach – SBG Charlestown chief Owen Roddy – is expecting a similar outcome second time around.
He told The Mac Life: “People don’t punch like Conor. His opponents don’t punch like Conor. All Conor needs is a split second.
"A half an inch to see the shot, and once he bangs the shot, you’re going to be out.
"You’re going to be on wobbly legs, and if you’re on wobbly legs, it will be the next one that finishes you.”
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