Dustin Poirier fell victim to a devastating knockout loss on Saturday night at the hands of fellow American fighter Justin Gaethje.
UFC 291‘s main event saw the lightweight division’s second and third ranked fighters meet in the octagon in a star-studded clash for the promotion’s BMF belt. The title in question was first introduced back in 2019, as fan-favourites Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal slugged it out for the controversial silverware. The latter emerged victorious, with the belt having not been fought for since.
Dustin Poirier came into the weekend’s event off the back of a third round submission victory over Michael Chandler last November, and many thought the 34-year-old would take confidence from the fact he had beaten Gaethje via knockout in 2018, a bout pipped by many as fight of the year.
It was ‘The Highlight‘, however, who left the octagon with his hands raised at UFC 291. After a reasonably-even opening five minutes, Gaethje delivered a brutal second-round head kick not too dissimilar from Leon Edwards’ movie-like finish of Kamaru Usman for the Welterweight title. Interestingly, that also occurred at Salt Lake City’s Delta Center.
The setup for the subsequently fight-ending shot was perfectly-excuted by Gaethje, who followed Herb Dean’s dramatic stoppage with his signature back-flip celebration.
Dustin Poirier praised his American counterpart for the finish in UFC 291’s post-fight press conference. Despite this, ‘The Diamond‘ was left understandably frustrated, claiming the result had hurt him more given he feels like his is better than Gaethje.
Dustin Poirier Frustrated with Knockout Loss
Poirier explained how he had no hard feelings after losing out on the Lightweight title to at-the-time holder Khabib Nurmagomedov as he believed the Dagestani to be superior to him as a fighter.
He failed to replicate these feelings following Saturday’s loss, however, with the 34-year-old still believing he’s a cut above Gaethje despite the nature of the defeat.
Speaking on The MMA Hour, he said: “Khabib was better than me. I lost Saturday to somebody I think I’m better than.
“I was away from home for nine weeks in training camp, you know. I dieted 11 weeks, sacrificed so much, really was really focused, man, was really, really focused, and felt great. The best I’ve ever felt. Honestly, the best I’ve ever felt.”
Poirier (29-8 (1NC)) and Gaethje (25-4) still maintain similar records, with both having fallen short to Lightweight title holders Nurmagomedov and Charles Oliveira. The duo’s personal record against each other now stands at 1-1 with each side earning knockout victories, and the pair also earned recent wins over fellow contender Michael Chandler.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
