At UFC 281, Dustin Poirier picked up another big win, submitting Michael Chandler after a bloody, back-and-forth war. The battle earned Poirier his eighth “Fight of the Night” bonus, tying the category’s record, and it solidified the former interim champion as one of the most exciting fighters of his generation.
Now, with wins over fellow violence all-stars Justin Gaethje, Eddie Alvarez, and Conor McGregor, the question for Poirier is, what’s next? And right now, “The Diamond” isn’t quite sure.
“Big fights. Fun fights,” Poirier told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “I don’t know, man. The violence triangle was completed. I finished Gaethje and Eddie. Chandler finished. There’s a bunch of fights that would be crazy matchups, I just don’t know a name right now.”
Poirier won the title, which not only proved his excitement but also kept him in the top 5 division. Poirier’s next opponent would be Beneil Dariush, a top 5 lightweight competitor. Dariush has an 8-fight winning streak and UFC 281, “The Diamond”, agreed that a fight with the BJJ blackbel would be logical.
However, given some space from fight night, Poirier appears to have had a change of heart.
“Not really, honestly,” Poirier said when asked if he wanted Dariush next. “No disrespect to Beneil. He was a great fighter, and did the job right. He is a respectful man, hard worker and goes into business. I appreciate that. He will be on my radar when he fights. When we just talked about the other names I’ve fought recently, that one’s not super exciting when I think about it.”
Poirier seems to be more interested in pursuing marquee matches with big-name competitors. Ones that, like with Chandler, filled him with a sense of danger and had the potential to go down in history.
“I want those, because those are going to be the fun fights, the crazy fights, potential ‘Fight of the Year’ type of fights,” Poirier said. “But those are also the fights that give me those butterflies in the stomach everyday, or when the contract comes through, and I see his name across from it. I’ve been watching [Chandler] a long time in Bellator, and I know some guys he beat. He’s very explosive, and that danger — it’s always the unknown, no matter how prepared you are. When you have a man of this caliber who can win the fight in seconds, hit you with shots and cover distance, many of his actions are extremely dangerous .”
While Dariush’s skills are undeniably impressive, they don’t bring the same amount of excitement and action as McGregor and Chandler. And, since Poirier, an ex-interim champion, has some flexibility in his plans.
If Poirier is solely focused on defending his title, Dariush will likely be the best option. But if instead he prefers more marketable bouts, that doesn’t preclude him for the title conversation. As Poirier points out, Islam Makhachev’s win for the lightweight title opens up new avenues and opportunities to earn the belt.
“It open up doors,” said he. “It makes new matchups and things like that, but I always knew there was a path back to the belt, even if Charles had the belt. Anything I set my mind to, I’m capable of doing. It was clear that I could again climb the mountain. Now, the question is, will I continue to face the monsters? Do I really want to be in this position three or four times more to get there again. I’m taking this one fight at a time. This is not retirement talk. I have been at this for so many years and it has been so difficult. .”
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2022/11/20/23463347/dustin-poirier-uninterested-beneil-dariush-wants-big-fights-after-completing-the-violence-triangle?rand=96749
