Dustin Poirier has headlined several UFC events during his illustrious mixed martial arts career. But, has he ever ascended the throne and captured a divisional championship? Let’s take a look.
At the time of this writing, “The Diamond” has 39 professional tilts under his belt and boasts a record of 30-8 with one no-contest (15 wins via KO/TKO, eight by submission, and seven through decision). He made his pro debut in 2009 and has been fighting for a major MMA promotion since 2010, first as a World Extreme Cagefighting athlete, and then for the UFC.
The 35-year-old has pursued glory in two separate weight classes — lightweight and featherweight — and with 30 wins under his belt, Poirier has reaped the rewards of victory many more times than he’s felt the anguish of defeat.
But, even though he’s a beloved combatant, he’s never become an undisputed champion like his competitive rivals Conor McGregor and Max Holloway, for example. However, that’s not to say he hasn’t won a belt.
In his first-ever championship affair, Poirier earned the interim UFC lightweight title in 2019 when he bested Holloway by unanimous decision. Then-kingpin Khabib Nurmagomedov was serving a suspension he and McGregor received after their UFC 229 post-fight brawl in October 2018. With “The Eagle” unable to fly, the promotion introduced an interim championship, and Poirier and Holloway, who was the featherweight champion at the time, battled for it at UFC 236 in April 2019.
It was an all-out striking classic that went to the judges’ scorecards. And after the dust settled, The Diamond had the belt wrapped around his waist.
Unfortunately for Poirier, that’s the last time we’ve seen him don gold inside the Octagon. All in all, he’s had two cracks at becoming the 155-pound division’s undisputed ruler. He met Nurmagomedov in a title unification match after securing the vacant strap. But, he was forced to tap to a rear-naked choke during their UFC 242 main event in September 2019.
After rebuilding his momentum, which included back-to-back victories over McGregor, Poirier received his second undisputed championship contest. He drew Charles Oliveira in December 2021 but was on the receiving end of another rear-naked choke that closed the show at UFC 269.
Poirier has another opportunity to become the lightweight champion
He’s 2-1 since dropping the fight to Oliveira, and his most recent fisticuff landed him another golden opportunity. Poirier knocked out surging contender Benoit Saint Denis at UFC 299 in March, and UFC CEO Dana White announced on April 13 that Poirier would meet current 155-pound champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 on June 1.
Hopefully, third time’s a charm for Poirier. But, even if he loses, Poirier is a former interim champion and MMA superstar with a die-hard fanbase. So, he’s a winner and champion anyway.
