“I Should Have Controlled His Whole Body”- Dustin Poirier on Submitting Khabib Nurmagomedov

Dustin Poirier recalls his title bout against Khabib Nurmagomedov. On a recent episode of UFC Unfiltered Podcast Poirier talks about the time he almost submitted the Dagestani fighter.

The Diamond came up short against Khabib in his attempt to swipe the UFC Lightweight Title back. However, he did have a golden chance to seal the deal halfway through the fight, with a deep guillotine choke.

“It was close. It was as close as it can get. I would have finished a lot of guys in the UFC with that choke — a lot of guys. And I finish a lot of guys in the gym, all the time.”- Dustin Poirier

The fight took place in September. Poirier had his moment in the spotlight, however, the fight came to an end with Khabib dominating the entire bout. Even though Poirier gave it all he had while holding onto the champion in the choke, Khabib was able to wiggle out eventually.

“Doing jiu-jitsu as long as you have, and just having a feel, if there’s a centimeter of space where [Khabib] can roll his hips to the mat and just create a little bit of space and a little bit of breathing space… should have went, full guard. “I should have controlled his whole body and his hips. I could have really folded him over there if I had really went, full guard”- Dustin Poirier

Poirier recalls what all he could have done to end the fight right there and grab the title.

 Dustin Poirier Following His Loss

Poirier regards Khabib as one of the few fighters to beat whom one has to go the extra mile. Unlike other fighters, Khabib has the spark to keep going on amid adversity. The Eagle is like the fighter that comes up once or maybe twice in a century, a real prodigy.

“Simple things like that which would have finished 90 percent of the guys — that ten percent or five percent that Khabib is in, you just don’t finish guys with that. It has to be perfect, and it’s my fault. It’s a lag and a mistake in technique and it’s all on me.”- Dustin Poirier

The 31-year-old fighter has not set foot into the octagon since his loss against the stalwart of the lightweight division. The Diamond is slated to take on Dan Hooker in the upcoming UFC event in San Diego. However, the Coronavirus pandemic may put the fight in jeopardy.