Dustin Poirier gets honest about wanting Ilia Topuria or Justin Gaethje for retirement bout: "They never entertained it"

Dustin Poirier pushed hard for a trilogy bout with Justin Gaethje or a fresh test against Ilia Topuria for his retirement bout. Despite asking the UFC directly, Poirier said that those options were never on the table. Instead, the promotion zeroed in on Max Holloway and Poirier accepted out of respect and history.

Poirier is set to headline UFC 318 in New Orleans, his home state, against Holloway in what marks their third meeting. Holloway will put his BMF title on the line, and Poirier has the opportunity to walk away with the symbolic championship around his waist.

Topuria and Gaethje briefly seemed like dream opponents for Poirier’s swan song. Speaking about his initial preferences in an interview with MMA Junkie, Poirier said:

"I was asking Hunter [Campbell] for Gaethje, because we’re 1-1 I wanted to close out that trilogy. For some reason they really wanted this fight. That’s cool because I respect [Max] for my last fight...When [Ilia] said he was going to 155, I texted the UFC and said ‘Hey, let me know what’s going on with this guy. ’ But they never entertained it, they told me it’s not happening and they wanted Max.”

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Check out Dustin Poirier's comments below:

Chael Sonnen talks about respectful gesture from the UFC for Dustin Poirier's retirement bout

In a recent reveal, Chael Sonnen shared that he knew about the Max Holloway vs. Dustin Poirier matchup weeks before it became public.

Set for New Orleans, the trilogy bout brings Poirier a chance to fight in his hometown and potentially walk away with the BMF belt. Sonnen sees this as a rare sign of respect from the UFC. Previewing the clash on his YouTube channel, Sonnen said:

“Dustin just got off the Pat McAfee show and announced that he will be fighting Max in New Orleans. It wasn’t just the UFC getting on board with this, it was also New Orleans. New Orleans came to the table with a pile of money to get this event. Generally, I wouldn’t mention something like that, but I think that’s very respectful to Poirier."

He added:

"I think the way the organization is treating Poirier... Nobody gets to go out on top. If you’re good enough... if you’re Robbie Lawler or Georges St-Pierre or Lennox Lewis or Khabib [Nurmagomedov] and you can pull out one of those moments… but nobody is going to have a promoter help them go out on top.”

Check out Chael Sonnen's comments below (1:15):

About the author

Abhishek Ramadasan Nambiar is a journalist who covers MMA at Sportskeeda. As a long-time practitioner of various martial arts, seeing the fusion of different forms into a quest for the ultimate fighter felt both primal and profoundly technical. At Sportskeeda, Abhishek's primary goal is to offer a fresh and distinctive angle through his writing, aiming to provide readers with more than just the basics of MMA. Along with keeping them informed about the latest developments in the sport, he strives to offer valuable insights that enhance their understanding of MMA.

When not writing about MMA, Abhishek often spends time reviewing music or devouring Brian Evanson's and Blake Crouch's work. Sign up to receive news, regular updates, and exclusive coverage.

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Edited by Abhishek Nambiar