Dustin Poirier has hung up the gloves.
On Saturday night in New Orleans, Poirier made the walk for the final time when he squared off with Max Holloway for the ‘BMF’ title at UFC 318. The bout was Poirier’s planned retirement fight, and unfortunately, “The Diamond” was unable to end his career on a win, losing a competitive decision to Holloway in their trilogy bout.
Poirier leaves the sport as an almost universally respected figure, and one of the more popular fighters of his generation, but where does he rank in the grand scheme of things? We gathered the MMA Fighting brain trust to discuss what Poirier’s legacy is in MMA, what this win means for Holloway, and the other major topics coming out of the latest pay-per-view event.
1. What is your blurb review of UFC 318?
Martin: A fitting end for a fan favorite. The entire event was built around Dustin Poirier and his retirement fight played out just like so many of his in the past — an absolute war. Thanks for the memories, Dustin.
Lee: A total roller-coaster of an event, with a thrilling run of finishes to kick off the prelims, then a chewy middle section, capped off by a main card that vacillated between kick-ass and frustratingly forgettable. Still working out the math of whether the top 5 fights were worth $80.
Heck: Exactly what it needed to be: A tribute to one of the most exciting fighters we’ve ever seen compete. While a couple of fights underwhelmed, we had two top-10 Fight of the Year contenders and one of the wildest prelim slates in quite some time.
Meshew: Heading into the event, I thought UFC 318 was a card without much narrative depth, but one that would be quite fun to watch. It was exactly that.
2. What is Dustin Poirier’s legacy in MMA?
Meshew: Dustin Poirier represents the best of what fighting can be and should serve as an inspiration to all future generations.
Sports, at their best, are about transformation, the growth of human beings through struggle and effort. They’re parables on the soul of the human condition, and while people will always be fascinated and enthralled by someone like Jon Jones — whose greatness transcends the planes on which he competed — Jones’s story is a tragedy. Fighters would like to have Jones’s career, but no one wants to be Jon Jones the person. For Poirier, you don’t have to make that distinction.
For Poirier, fighting was not a means of validation. It was a tool to focus himself into the best version of what he could be. MMA was not a mountain to stand atop and proclaim his greatness, but a path to climb up. His career was about the journey, not the destination, and it’s the sort of career anyone should aspire to have.
Martin: Your favorite fighter’s favorite fighter.
That got said a lot during fight week leading up to UFC 318, but it’s absolutely true when it comes to Poirier. He was never the most dominant fighter on the roster because more often than not, he had to give up a pint of his own blood to win. But Poirier was the definition of heart, will, and determination. He got knocked down plenty but always found a way to pick himself off the canvas and stand up again. Poirier was never an undisputed champion, so that dings his legacy a little bit when comparing him to all-time greats, but there’s no doubt this guy is a future Hall of Famer who never gave anything less than 100 percent of himself in every fight. That’s a rare breed.
Lee: One of the Four Horsemen of the UFC’s modern empire.
No one will ever claim Poirier is a top box office draw, but alongside Max Holloway, Justin Gaethje, and Charles Oliveira, he has served as an integral piece of the UFC’s electrifying backbone for over a decade. If you saw one of those names on the card, you were guaranteed at least one great fight, no matter who was headlining the card.
Miss me with that “he never won an undisputed title” nonsense. Belts are props. Diamonds are forever.
Heck: The rare breed of one of the good guys, and one of those guys when the octagon door locked behind him.
The fact that Poirier’s career led to the UFC putting forth a little extra effort — which is a rare thing these days — says everything you need to know about what “The Diamond” has meant to the sport and the company. Very few times in a fighter’s career does he or she get everything they deserve, and Poirier did it. He went out on his terms, he’s financially free, and is universally revered for the work he put in.
Poirier will be missed, but his highlight-filled career will live in the sport’s history forever.
3. Where does Max Holloway go from here?
Heck: Charles Oliveira, and there is no other answer.
The two headlined an event in August 2015 when both were featherweights, and an injury to Oliveira made for an unfortunate ending early on. Now, we can get the fight we deserve from two of the most exciting fighters of all time, and for the BMF title.
At the moment, I have ZERO interest in Holloway fighting Ilia Topuria again right now. We saw it, and I just can’t see a world where that fight goes any differently. Of course, things could change in the future, but if we’re going to continue to make the BMF title a thing, then actually make it a thing. Two lightweights holding and defending titles seems all the way right to me.
Meshew: I hope it’s to carve out his own path with this ‘BMF’ title.
Holloway is such an anomaly because he was so young when he started and had massive success early on. For most fighters, losing a world title would be the beginning of the end of a career, but for Holloway, it’s just a chapter. He’s still only 33 years old, and while that’s an old 33, the man is still putting on exceptional displays and grabbing big wins, with no sign of stopping anytime soon. Who else has done something like that?
That being said, I have almost zero interest in Holloway as a lightweight contender. Ilia Topuria is the champion, and their first fight was not competitive. A second go around would be worse because Ilia is still improving, and Max is not. Instead, let’s let Max add some actual esteem to the fictional ‘BMF’ title by defending it a bunch. Charles Oliveira makes the most sense next, but who is turning down Holloway vs. Dan Hooker next year? Let’s let Max make MMA fun for a bit.
Martin: Back into the hunt for a world title.
Holloway stated repeatedly in the lead-up to this fight that he was completely dedicated to his future at lightweight, and it showed in his win over Poirier. He looked bigger, stronger, and hit much harder while still showing his signature durability. There’s little doubt he’s going to be a player at 155, and it seems like everyone has already settled on the Oliveira fight, but let me throw out one alternative. What about Arman Tsarukyan? He’s pretty obviously not getting a title fight next, and if Justin Gaethje isn’t interested, why not throw him in there with a proven veteran like Holloway? That’s easily a massive Fight Night main event or co-main event on a pay-per-view.
Lee: Wherever the hell he damn wants.
Well, more realistically, however, the UFC wants to utilize him. He played the role of samurai executioner Saturday and could do so again somewhere down the road (Charles Oliveira? Jim Miller? Anyone else want to go out getting clobbered one last time?), but he’s also the reigning “BMF” champion, which, while silly, essentially means the matchmakers can put him in there with whoever they want. And then there’s always a rematch with Topuria.
For me, it’s got to be Oliveira, if not to send Oliveira off (give us another couple of years, “do Bronx!”), but to finally give us the proper fight we never got to see in Saskatoon.
4. Who was the biggest loser at UFC 318?
Lee: Lil Wayne.
In what could have been a cool moment for the legendary rapper as he was announced to be part of Dustin Poirier’s entourage, it turned out to be nothing more than that as he walked out for the main event with little fanfare. I saw several comments on social media asking if he even showed up, because if you happened to glance away at the screen, it was easy not to notice him. Zero mic time, and they couldn’t even get creative with Poirier’s music, like maybe running the first 30 seconds of A Milli before mixing it into James Brown’s The Boss.
And then he didn’t even get to put the “BMF” belt around his fellow Louisianian’s waist. Thanks for coming, Weezy F. Baby.
Heck: It’s Daniel Rodriguez and Kevin Holland because they got the big fat hose job from the UFC.
Rodriguez and Holland had the craziest fight of the year so far, including a third round that was so insane I was laughing with enjoyment. And with all respect to Brendan Allen and Marvin Vettori, that fight should not have gotten Fight of the Night over this one. I’ll be stunned if Rodriguez vs. Holland isn’t on my Fight of the Year list, and it will likely be high up there.
And shout out to D-Rod for continuing to grit it out at 38 years young. He deserved that bonus, as did Holland for that war of attrition.
Meshew: Marvin Vettori because he’s now lost three in a row and four of his past five. With Contender Series right around the corner, the former middleweight title challenger is in serious jeopardy of losing his job. Plus, you’re always a loser when you lose a grudge match fight.
Martin: As much as Mr. Heck makes a compelling case for Rodriguez and Holland, the real answer is Max Holloway and Dustin Poirier because they absolutely deserved Fight of the Night honors over everyone else.
Yes, main event fighters always seem to get a leg up on the competition when it comes to bonuses, and that’s frustrating for those athletes on the undercard and prelims because it feels like they’re always trying to ice skate uphills when it comes to stealing attention away from the headliner. But c’mon, Holloway and Poirier put on a five-round classic. They earned that bonus.
5. Outside of the main event, who stole the show at UFC 318?
Martin: Brendan Allen and Marvin Vettori, but not because they were the Fight of the Night (see my argument earlier about who deserved that honor).
No, they stole the show for one very simple reason: The seething hatred between these two didn’t result in a three-round staring contest. So many times when fighters have real, personal beef, the actual showdown ends up as a lackluster affair because neither person wants to give an inch and risk an embarrassing loss (Where you at, Muhammad Mokaev and Manel Kape?). Allen and Vettori proved that real animosity can pay off because these two wanted to take a piece of each other’s souls in there. Well done, gentlemen.
Lee: Daniel Rodriguez and Kevin Holland, take a bow.
Their main card bout was already a wild one through two rounds with both fighters rocking each other on more than one occasion (at one point, Rodriguez took a clean punch from Holland, went completely limp for a full second, and then somehow stayed on his feet before resuming the scrap). Then came the closing seconds in the third, which featured the gassed welterweights scrambling for dear life on the floor, Rodriguez ending up in full mount somehow, but then not having anything left to actually finish the fight.
Not since Jiri Prochazka vs. Glover Teixeira have I seen the martial arts mixed in such random fashion.
Heck: Ateba Gautier is not only going to be fun to watch, but this young man, an absolute savage, might be a guy that wins a belt someday.
Yes, I know: “Heck, relax. He’s only 2-0 in the UFC.” You’re right, but the man is only 23, and has all the potential in the world. I knew he’d nuke Robert Valentin, but I didn’t think he’d make it look as easy and effortless as he did. Valentin got hit for the first time, and the fight was pretty much over.
Two big things need to happen: One, Gautier needs to be active. Trot this man out there as often as possible and let him build a highlight reel. Which leads to the No. 2 point — slow roll Gautier. Keep giving him bodies to roll over — at least for two more fights. Gautier is on my short list of prospects to truly keep an eye on, and anyone with me on that emotional investment will likely be paid off in a big way.
Meshew: The real answer is Rodriguez and Holland, who had one of the most fun, silly fights I’ve seen in years. Also, shoutout to Paulo Costa, who turned back the clock in a big way and went from possibly getting cut to now on the verge of a big fight with Khamzat Chimaev. But my answer is the woman in the first bout of the evening.
I was super high on Carli Judice coming off Contender Series, and let me tell you, I’m a genius. I have no idea if Judice will ever win a belt, or even fight for one, but got dayum is she gonna be fun for the next 10 years. Judice fights like an agitated mongoose with knives for hands. She’s all violence, all the time, which is something desperately needed in women’s MMA these days.
One day in the future, in like 2028, we’ll get a Judice vs. Dakota Ditcheva fight, and when that day comes, my spirit will transcend my body and join the choir of angels in Valhalla.
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