As he prepares to face Max Holloway for the third time at UFC 318 later this month, Dustin Poirier has been reflecting on their first two meetings inside the Octagon.
Poirier (30-9 MMA, 22-8 UFC) is set to take on former UFC featherweight champion Holloway (26-8 MMA, 22-8 UFC) in what is expected to be the final fight of his illustrious career. “The Diamond” has already defeated Holloway twice—first via submission in Holloway’s UFC debut back in 2012, and then by decision in 2019, a bout that earned Poirier the interim UFC lightweight title.
In an interview with ESPN this week, Poirier took a trip down memory lane.
“I was his first fight in the UFC,” Poirier told Megan Olivi. “He took the fight on short notice. I was supposed to fight Ricardo Lamas. Then I was going to fight Rani Yahya. Both guys got hurt somehow. And Max filled in.
“He was like 19 or 20. He was super young. This was, I think, 12, 13 years ago. But I didn't know a whole lot about him. I couldn't find footage. You know, he only had a few pro fights. But obviously, for the right reason, they brought him in. He's a legend. So it was kind of a switch-up for me. I was training to fight Ricardo. I was training to fight a jiu-jitsu guy, now a kickboxer, a tall guy. Just so many different things went on in that training camp. But that was at the time of my career when I just got into the UFC, and I was a year in, and I was on a win streak, maybe three, four wins in a row, and I would have fought anybody they put in front of me."
Poirier’s win over “Blessed” at UFC 143 remains the only time Holloway has ever been submitted in his professional career. And while Poirier is widely known for his exciting fighting style and thunderous left hook, he feels that UFC fans have often underestimated his grappling skills.
“I've been doing jiu-jitsu for a long time,” Poirier pointed out. “Just because I don't use it that much or I've been submitted in fights…I used to compete at IBJJF all the time. Earned my stripes and did the local competitions and trained just for a very, very long time. But that submission was actually, it happened because of a fault on my technique.
“I had an arm bar extended. I didn't throw my leg over to keep his head down and he just sat up into a triangle. So, you know, he threw me a layup right there!”
The fight against Holloway on July 19 will mark the second trilogy bout of Poirier’s career. After suffering a knockout loss to Conor McGregor in 2014, he got his revenge by finishing “The Notorious” in their 2021 rematch.
The pair met for a third time just a few months later, with the bout ending at the close of the first round after McGregor suffered a broken tibia..
“This one's different,” Poirier said while comparing both trilogies. “Usually it's like 1-1 or, you know, I'm 2-0 on Max. But he's a legend and a great fighter and a great champion. And like we spoke about earlier, just (look at) the things he's done in his career from that young kid I fought in his debut all the way full circle. I was his first fight in the UFC. Now he's going to be my last fight in the UFC. So it's just, it's crazy. But when I lay the gloves down in July, there's nobody else like that I would rather have fought my last fight than Max Holloway.”
Holloway’s BMF title will be on the line in the main event at UFC 318. The Hawaiian claimed the belt in spectacular fashion when he knocked out Justin Gaethje in the final seconds of their clash at UFC 300 last year. He later challenged Ilia Topuria for the UFC featherweight title in October but was knocked out for the first time in his UFC career.
Holloway may be coming off a loss heading into this fight, but Poirier doesn’t believe that has diminished his star power in the slightest.
“It’s got to be a legend only,” Poirier responded when asked why Holloway had been selected as his final UFC opponent. “Max ticks all those boxes, knocking out Gaethje and I know he just lost to Topuria, but he's still he's in his prime right now and one of the longtime champions and those are the guys that I want on my resume.
“I'm going to try my best to be in a moment on fight week, because this is the last time I'm ever going to feel these morning jitters of fight day and walking into the arena. I'll never feel this again. So I want to put on a show. I want to go out with a bang, and I want it to be fight of the night, fight of the year. Yeah, I'm expecting stitches.”
