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Dustin Poirier last entered the octagon in June, in a fifth-round submission loss to Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title at UFC 302. While he hinted that the fight could be the final appearance of his mixed martial arts career, he has since said that he plans to compete at least one more time.
'The Diamond' recently revealed that he would like to face Justin Gaethje in a trilogy bout in Louisiana for his retirement fight.
Speaking to Ariel Helwani on the MMA reporter's new self-titled show, Poirier said:
"I would love to lay my gloves down at home and never fight again. Finish here in front of my Louisiana friends and family, the people who have been supporting me since I was 17 years old through fighting. And to go out on top. To show I'm leaving, but I still have it. That's important to me, too. I'm not getting squeezed out. Anything could happen. I could lose two more and then I'm one of those guys who got squeezed out of the sport. I want to beat these guys, tough fights, and walk away on top."
When asked who he would like to face, Poirier said:
"It changes from week to week, month to month. This landscape of fighting is so crazy. Me and Gaethje are 1-1. I would love to do the last fight with him in Louisiana. Our first fight was in his backyard, our second fight was in a neutral ground, the third one, let's do it in my backyard."
Check out Dustin Poirier's comments on his retirement fight below (2:16:09):
Furthermore, Poirier added that he would be interested in facing Nate Diaz in Louisiana. He shared that if the former lightweight title challenger returns to the UFC, he would be open to moving up to welterweight for the bout.
'The Diamond' previously faced Gaethje at UFC on FOX 29 in 2018, winning via fourth-round TKO. The pair rematched for the 'BMF' title at UFC 291 last year, with 'The Highlight' winning via second-round knockout.
Dustin Poirier details nearly running into Conor McGregor
Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor share one of the biggest rivalries in the history of mixed martial arts. 'The Diamond' recently revealed that the issues are not behind them and that the pair nearly ran into one another in Las Vegas. During a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, the No.4-ranked lightweight stated:
"Conor was behind me, apparently, and my agent was walking behind me and he grabs me. So Conor might've saw the back of my head. I don't know. I didn't see him. He grabs my shoulder and says, 'Go this way, to the right, to the right.' We start walking to the right. I'm like, 'The booth is right there.' We start walking to the right and then once we get clear of everybody, he's like, 'Dude, we almost had a big problem.'"
Check out Dustin Poirier's comments on Conor McGregor below:
Poirier noted that the history between the two would have led to an altercation. He has shared the octagon with McGregor three times, winning the two most recent appearances after suffering a loss in their first clash. 'The Notorious' infamously made disparaging comments about 'The Diamond's' wife, Julie Poirier, following their third bout, making it unlikely that the two ever settle their differences.
