Dustin Poirier may be in store for some wholesale changes to his career after losing to Charles Oliveira at UFC 269, including a new division with an ‘exciting’ first opponent.
At UFC 269, Dustin Poirier hoped to finally reach the mountaintop and become a UFC champion. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be, and he lost via rear-naked choke for the second time when bidding to become the undisputed lightweight champion.
Four days removed from the event, Poirier appeared on The MMA Hour to reflect on the loss and what may be next for him. One revelation made by Poirier is that a strong part of him feels he will never have the opportunity to become the lightweight champion again. As he alluded to at the post-fight press conference, that uncertainty is rooted in questions of desire, not his abilities.
“I don’t know if I’m gonna make that cut again,” Poirier said about a potential quick path back to a lightweight title shot. “I might never fight at 155 pounds again. I don’t know the future.”
Poirier recalled back to when he chose to make the move from featherweight to lightweight in 2015, a decision brought about by very similar circumstances.
“Yeah, that’s kinda what nudged me to go over the edge to go to ‘55 when I was at ‘45. I was close to a title shot then I lost to Conor in 2014, and I knew I would have to make that cut three, four, fight more times, whatever it would be to get another title shot, and I just didn’t have it in me to do it.
“And here I am at ’55, and I’m thinking, like, well, if I gotta fight two, three more times to get a title shot, I don’t know if I wanna live those training camps on low calories pushing my body like that. I’d rather just do it and have fun because I love what I’m doing, making it as enjoyable as possible instead of sacrificing and hurting every day in camp because I’m low in calories.”
The One Fight That Gets Dustin Poirier Excited
During the interview, Poirier confessed that he does not know what the future holds for him. He is not fully certain when or even if he will fight again. Looking at the landscape at both lightweight and welterweight, nothing particularly gets the veteran’s motor running—that is except for one guy from Stockton, California.
“When I’ve been lying down, thinking about fights, nothing gets me excited—unless Nate Diaz wants to fight. If he wants to fight, that gets me excited.”
Diaz and Poirier were booked to fight in 2018 at UFC 230, but that fight fell through for unconfirmed reasons. Since then, the two have occasionally chirped back and forth at one another on social media. Most recently, Diaz threw a shot at a downed Poirier immediately following the Louisianian’s loss to Oliveira.
Earlier this year, Diaz revealed that he is still keen on the idea of fighting Poirier, and that interest has always been returned. Diaz’s current contract with the UFC has been extended, which buys him and the UFC more time to land the perfect opponent for the final fight on his current deal. So all things considered, now may be as good a time as there ever will be to finally settle some unfinished business.
Would YOU be excited to see Dustin Poirier vs. Nate Diaz in 2022?
Continue Reading Poirier Only Excited For Nate Diaz Bout, May Never Fight At LW Again at MMA News.
Poirier Only Excited For Nate Diaz Bout, May Never Fight At LW Again