Retiring where he began his career is Dustin Poirier’s medium-term goal. During an interview with Ariel Helwani, the former UFC interim lightweight champion expressed his desire to hang up his gloves in his home state of Louisiana. Poirier, 35, considered retirement after his fifth-round submission loss to Islam Makhachev in the main event of UFC 302, held on June 1 in New Jersey.

His dreams of retiring with the belt tied around his waist were shattered with the loss, and the former interim lightweight champion knows that this was his last rodeo for the championship. Prior to their showdown, Poirier was hinting that he would retire from the MMA world, despite the fans wanting another fight. These talks of retirement surely made every MMA fan wonder if Poirier is actually all geared up to hang up his gloves. And now UFC head honcho Dana White has finally come clean on Dustin Poirier’s retirement status.

In the recent post-event press conference of the Dana White Contender Series, the UFC CEO revealed that someone like Poirier cannot be completely ruled out. And while it is upon ‘Diamond’ to decide his fate, White believes that the fighter still has a lot in him to remain an active fighter on the roster. “Look at what he did. I mean, everybody was talking about his execution against St. Denis. Look at what he did. You can never count Poirier out. And that’s up to him—he’s the one who gets to decide whether he wants to keep fighting or not. It’s always up to them, not me. But to say, ‘Oh, he should probably walk away right now?’ I don’t know about that.” 

He further compared Dustin Poirier to Daniel Cormier, subtly hinting that, like he did not want DC to retire, he shares a similar sentiment when it comes to the big decision of the former interim lightweight champion. White said, “I didn’t think Cormier should have walked away when he did, but he felt it was his time, and he did it. He’s moved on, and now look at him—he’s doing great. Look at the second career he’s built; it’s unbelievable. These guys really need to start thinking about that.”

DC surely has made an amazing career out of being an MMA pundit and host. His analysis has been top-notch, and fans would love to see Poirier join him and other MMA experts in the future. However, it may take time since Poirier still has a dream fight in mind.

Dustin Poirier wants to settle a score before walking out

During an interview with Ariel Helwani, the former UFC interim lightweight champion expressed his desire to hang up his gloves in his home state of Louisiana. “I will fight again,” Poirier told Ariel Helwani. The ‘Diamond’ further added, “My goal is to get an event here in Louisiana, whether that is in Lafayette or New Orleans. I want to lay the gloves down where I started fighting—that’s my goal. It’s just opponent availability and what makes sense. My goal is to take my gloves off in Louisiana and retire at home.”

The American Top Team fighter is keen to complete the trilogy with Justin Gaethje. He says that he and Justin are in a draw with one win each. So he’d love to have one last fight with him in Louisiana. Poirier said, “Me and Gaethje are 1-1; I would love to do the last fight with him in Louisiana. Our first fight was in his backyard; our second fight was in neutral ground. The third one, let’s do it in my backyard.”

The UFC has not held an event in Louisiana since UFC Fight Night 68 back in 2015. So it would be interesting to see if ‘Diamond’ manages to get his dream retirement fight in his ‘backyard.’ But whatever his decision may be, MMA fans truly know that the ‘Diamond’ has surely earned his place in the MMA Hall of Fame. What do you think? Should Poirier hang up his gloves? Let us know in the comments.