UFC 299 featured a bloody spectacle, with the ͏co-main event proving to be a significant turnaround for Dustin Poirier.͏ Despite the brutal nature of the night, ‘Diamond’ took center stage to prove why he is considered the best lightweight without the ‘155’ gold. The Louis͏iana native knocked out Benoit Saint-Denis in style to win the bout despite being the underdog.͏ However, Poirier did ͏not enter the fight without any ͏injuries.
The initial round of their match took a toll on Poirier, with Saint-Denis dominating ‘Diamond’ and it seemed as if ‘Diamond’ was having some problems controlling his movements. However, things turned around in the second round when Poirier took control and knocked the ‘God of War’. The win was spectacular but one might not know that Porier was suffering from hideous injuries before the fight.
Dustin Poirier hid his injuries to fight Benoit-Saint Denis
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After Justin Gaethje knocked out Dustin Poirier at UFC 291, ‘Diamond’ turned a bit cynical. He began talking about retirement, which rattled the MMA community. However, when he received the news about his upcoming match against Benoit-Saint Denis, Poirier vowed that he would give him a war. ‘Diamond’ gave his everything in the camp, and this seems to have worked tremendously for him. Nevertheless, many might not know that Poirier injured his ribs while in the camp.
While in conversation with Ariel Helwani, Porier confessed that he ruptured some of his ribs during training. He said “I didn’t take any damage in this fight. Yeah, I will be okay for June. I actually went into this fight with a couple of injuries from the camp. Gamrot, like, busted my ribs like three weeks ago, and it’s been bothering me really bad ever since”
Helwani inquired whether this injury put a thought in his mind about pulling out, to which Poirier responded- “No, I mean… I was hoping he wouldn’t rip apart on me on that side, and when I sneeze and twist and stuff, I didn’t go to the doctor, but something was going on with my ribs for sure.”
Dustin Poirier is asked about Islam Makhachev#TheMMAHour pic.twitter.com/rGD8mtNr1u
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) March 11, 2024
The conversation about his injury holds the crucial key to his next match which is arguably against the lightweight champ, Islam Makhachev.
Poirer might be looking at the ‘155’ lbs gold again
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The former interim lightweight champion seems to be looking at the lightweight belt again. The uncrowned prince was the interim lightweight champ but Khabib Nurmagomedov stripped him of his chances at the lightweight belt. His second endeavor towards the belt was halted by Charles Oliveira by a submission, Poirier was not given a chance after that. However, it seems like things are going to change after his spectacular performance at UFC 299.
Read More: UFC News: Islam Makhachev Goes Against Dana White to Give Dustin Poirier the Title Shot in June
There have been rumors going around stating that the UFC admins are looking to give Poirier a chance to face Islam Makhachev. In a conversation with Helwani, Poirier said “I haven’t spoken to the UFC but I think it could happen. I said that you know in fight week doing those interviews and people ask me where do I think I am in the lightweight division and I really believed that I was one big win away, one good finish, you know, doesn’t matter the opponent I need to look good,”
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If Poirier gets a chance to fight Makhachev then it would be his 3rd endeavor for the lightweight title and this might be his last. Is Poirier ready to take on Makhachev so soon? Tell us about your opinion in the comments below.