Dustin Poirier‘s retirement has been a hot topic in the MMA community, and several names for who will face him in his swansong have been thrown into the speculative mix. ‘The Diamond’ wants to make the final walk to Octagon in the same place he started his mixed martial arts journey. While names are being decided, Poirier shed a few details surrounding the location of his ‘last dance’.

Apparently, the UFC has plans to come to Louisiana’s capital city of New Orleans and Dustin Poirier believes that the event could be taking place later in the summer and he wants to see himself in his final fight because it’s been almost a decade since he last fought there. “It’s summer. July or August, probably,” said the UFC veteran during an interview with MMA Fighting.

“And we’re working on UFC New Orleans. I’m trying to retire in my home state. The UFC hasn’t been there since maybe 2015,” Dustin Poirier further stated. “I fought on the card, I fought Yancy Medeiros but that was the last time I got to fight at home. So, to retire where it all started in Louisiana would be incredible for me in my career.”

Given that there’s going to be no title on the line in his retirement, he was asked if he’s gunning for a main event fight. To that, Dustin Poirier replied, “Yes.” This most likely means that he may headline a Fight Night card as opposed to a pay-per-view. The hunt for the ideal opponent, meanwhile, seems to have taken a backseat because ‘The Diamond’ hinted that the negotiations are still underway. “Not quite yet [on finalizing his opponent]. [We’re] still working on a couple things.”

The Louisiana native didn’t have the best of circumstances growing up—the former interim lightweight champion had run-ins with the law and also dropped out of high school. Growing up in Lafayette, things changed for the better when ‘The Diamond’ discovered mixed martial arts at a local gym in the late 2000s before moving to the American Top Team in Florida in 2012. But Poirier’s heart still lies in his home state of Louisiana.

‘The Diamond’ seems to be geared toward making his last fight take place in his home state, but we’re yet to find out about his opponent. Meanwhile, rumors of him facing Ilia Topuria have gained traction, but the veteran hasn’t addressed anything on that front. However, Poirier did give his two cents on Topuria’s lightweight move.

Dustin Poirier reveals his thoughts on his rumored opponent’s lightweight move

So, Dana White finally made things official about Ilia Topuria‘s lightweight jump after announcing that he relinquished the featherweight title. While the Georgian-Spaniard has shown interest in fighting for the title, others claim that he needs to prove himself by taking on top lightweights to earn a shot at the title. However, Dustin Poirier, after assessing what Topuria has done in his last couple of fights, believes it’s a no-brainer for the UFC to put him in a title shot immediately.

“With a guy like him, vacating the belt and moving up, finishing Max Holloway the way that he did, I would give him a crack at the lightweight title right off the bat,” Dustin Poirier told MMA Fighting. But the problem is that Islam Makhachev doesn’t seem too keen on taking on a featherweight for a third time. So maybe Topuria ends up fighting ‘The Diamond’ because that’s also a fight that interests the former featherweight champion.

For Topuria, too, Poirier seems like an exciting matchup. Tipping his hat to the former interim lightweight champ, ‘El Matador’ told MMA Fighting, “I love that dog Dustin Poirier. He’s a fighter, you know what I mean… he goes in and he fights until he dies. You’re going to have that guy in front of you fighting and trying to take your head off. That’s a very exciting fight for me and I think for the fans also.”

It’s always nice to end your career on a high. Daniel Cormier, a few weeks ago, suggested that Dustin Poirier take on easier competition in his last fight. But is that something Poirier prefers? Will he listen to his fellow Louisiana native or do you think he’ll risk it all against a dangerous man like Ilia Topuria? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.