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Din Thomas has given his thoughts on why Dustin Poirier has earned the right to fight whoever he wants in his next UFC outing.
This year has seen Dustin Poirier really explode into the limelight in a manner few would have imagined. 'The Diamond' has faced off against Conor McGregor twice since the start of 2021, and after decisively knocking him out in January, Dustin Poirier beat the Irishman once again at UFC 264 last month - this time courtesy of a broken leg suffered by McGregor.
Where will Dustin Poirier go next?
Attention has now turned towards Poirier potentially fighting Charles Oliveira for the UFC lightweight title. But if his recent Twitter activity is to be believed, a long-awaited showdown with Nate Diaz could also be on the cards.
In a recent appearance on MMA on SiriusXM, the aforementioned Din Thomas spoke about why he believes Dustin Poirier can go in whatever direction he desires in his next fight.
“If Dustin wasn’t who he was and hadn’t been in the game for as long as he has been, and if he didn’t beat the list of guys that he’s already beaten, I would say yeah [focus on the title]. A guy like Ciryl Gane, if Ciryl Gane wanted to fight Anthony Joshua in a boxing match I’d say ‘come on man, get outta here’. But Dustin Poirier, to me, has put himself in a position and established himself as the type of person who can get the fights that he wants to take."
Thomas added that Poirier should be allowed to face the Stockton native under the condition that he challenges for the undisputed 155-pound gold after.
“If he wants to fight Nate Diaz I think we should allow him to - under the condition that he fights for the title after.”
Thomas, who has been in the mixed martial arts game for a long time now, is one of many pundits out there who recognizes the sacrifices that Dustin Poirier has made for this sport.
The guy has been knocked down so many times, but finally, he’s at a point where he can pick and choose fights that’ll make him and his family the most money.
At the very least, we all have to try and respect that.
