The fight between Dustin Poirier and Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 was something that the fight fans can never forget. Needless to say, it was a bout that showed how strong Makhachev and Poirier were as they demonstrated their fighting prowess with great finesse. It was indeed a victory via submission for the Dagestani fighter, but Poirier’s resilience gleamed through the fight and greatly impressed the fighting community.

But little did ‘The Diamond’ know that his performance would impress the former President of the United States, Donald Trump. With all the love that the Lafayette resident received, getting a few words of praise from Trump was nothing short of an impressive feat. After all, the ex-POTUS also deemed Poirier as a ‘warrior’.

Donald Trump has nothing but praise for Dustin Poirier

On episode #526 of ‘This Past Weekend’ with Theo Von, the former US President made an appearance and had a talk revolving around the world of combat sports. As the conversation proceeded, Theo Von claimed that he was a big fan of ‘The Diamond’. But the fight fans didn’t expect Trump to speak words of praise for the lightweight fighter. The ex-POTUS said, “Oh, he’s great… He’s a warrior! That last fight he had. Whether you like it or not, he is a warrior.” 

The conversation soon shifted to Poirier’s last fight at UFC 302, where he competed for the final time to get his hands on the UFC lightweight championship belt. Unfortunately, Makhachev executed a phenomenal D’arce choke in the final round. Von seemed to think that the Lafayette resident won despite being tapped out. Trump, surprisingly, was of the same opinion.

The former President said, “No, he didn’t lose that fight. He really… Man, his fighting was tough. He was tough and didn’t expect that same fight. But he oftentimes, well he makes people suffer. There’s no question about it. You know, he’s all, he’s a pro. He’s a professional. As that fight went along he just got stronger and stronger. And he was getting pounded, and he was going to be choked out about four different times and he just wouldn’t let it happen.”

Right after Trump sent forth his praise for the Cajun warrior, Von revealed that Poirier even cooked dinner for Thanksgiving every single year. To which, Trump hinted at his desire to visit Poirier’s residence for the dinner. 

Needless to say, the former US President wanted to watch Poirier go up and fight in the Octagon again. But the lightweight fighter announced his apparent retirement from the sport after his fight against Makhachev. However, UFC veteran, Chael Sonnen, has some optimistic views on Poirier’s retirement.

Will ‘The Diamond’ return to the Octagon?

‘The Bad Guy’ took to his YouTube talk show back in June 2024 and revealed his thoughts on Poirier’s retirement. During the post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, ‘The Diamond’ pointed out that he wasn’t completely sure of taking retirement. Weigihing in on that, Sonnen reflected some light on the heat emanating from a possible matchup between Poirier and Colby Covington. 

‘The American Gangster’ said, “No, Dustin is not done. But he is saying goodbye and he is done with 155 pounds. I’m bringing you that piece of news because Dustin is very unlikely to call somebody out. But that somebody is out there. He is at 170 pounds. His name is Colby Covington. That’s the fight, that’s the one that’s waiting… He’s not done with fighting. He’s just done with the lightweight division.”

Now all that the fight fans need to do is wait and see how the cards unfold. Will Poirier return to the UFC as a welterweight contender and extract yet another reaction from Donald Trump? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.