It seems like this year, we will witness another legendary fighter’s chapter closing in the UFC. One of the best UFC fighters to have never won an undisputed belt, Dustin Poirier, is finally calling for his MMA swan song, and his partner for the ‘last dance’ has become a growing discussion in the MMA community. While Paddy Pimblett‘s name has popped up as a potential opponent, Poirier seems to be aiming for “legends only,” which the 36-year-old made clear in a social media post. However, Daniel Cormier suggests ‘The Diamond’ shouldn’t look too far to find his last opponent.

When we talk about legends, there are very few bigger than the Stockton native, Nate Diaz. The former UFC star has been linked many times about possibly making his promotional return, and although he didn’t explicitly call out ‘The Diamond’, he recently inserted himself into the mix by getting involved in the back and forth between Poirier and Pimblett. And gauging by the former interim champion’s response to Diaz, it seems like he’s not really interested in gracing the Stockton native with a fight. After all, Diaz did walk away from their UFC 230 press conference with both blaming each other for the fight falling through.

Meanwhile, it was a bit unusual when Daniel Cormier, who shares a brotherly bond with teammates like Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev (and would never fight them in the Octagon), suggested that Dustin Poirier fight someone from the American Top Team, specifically Renato Moicano. While some may disagree with that option, ‘DC’s suggestion looked like it was a fight where the chances of ‘The Diamond’ coming out on top seems higher since he’s trained with Moicano and bested him on more occasions than one. So, what’s better than capping off your career with a victory?

“I would actually call out Moicano if I was him. I get it. They train at ATT, but Moicano has openly said, ‘Man, he gets the best of me. He puts it on me in practice,'” Daniel Cormier told Chael Sonnen on the Good Guy/Bad Guy show. “He’s openly said it. I’m like, ‘Yo, I want that dude’. Cos’ guess what, Chael? You ain’t got no teammates no more once you retire.” The former double champion further stated, “You have teammates but like, in passing. You ain’t got to be in the gym with him every day.”

But if Poirier doesn’t go for these options – “legends in the sport” or otherwise – he has an opportunity to take on a world champion. The 3-time lightweight title contender recently responded to Ilia Topuria in a positive manner, after ‘El Matador’ directly a friendly callout to ‘The Diamond’.

Dustin Poirier responds to Ilia Topuria’s ‘callout’

During an interview on the Full Send podcast, Ilia Topuria praised Dustin Poirier for the career he’s had and even showed a keen interest in fighting the lightweight legend. “Just imagine a fight between me and Dustin Poirier. I love that dog,” ‘El Matador’ claimed. Poirier showed nothing but respect in his response to the UFC featherweight champion, calling him a “warrior” in the same lines as himself.

“A warrior knows one when he sees one. Nothing but respect,” Dustin Poirier stated on X. It’s been a long time since Dustin Poirier’s featherweight run, and it’s safe to assume that he won’t be making that cut for his final fight. And to his benefit, he doesn’t have to do so as Ilia Topuria has plans of moving to lightweight. So the title, most likely, will be out of the equation, but it will still amount to a legendary matchup in the history books.

Since this is the UFC, anything can happen. Whether it’s Paddy Pimblett, Nate Diaz, Renato Moicano, or Ilia Topuria, we can’t deny the excitement that a man like Dustin Poirier brings to the Octagon. Who do you think ‘The Diamond’ should take on in his MMA swan song? Let us know in the comments down below.