"Pure class from Dustin" - Fans react to footage of Dustin Poirier and Islam Makhachev squashing their beef after heated face-off

Dustin Poirier and Islam Makhachev have seemingly buried the hatchet after their volatile face-off at the UFC 302 pre-fight press conference. Footage of Poirier subsequently apologizing to Makhachev has garnered considerable attention in the MMA community, with fans soon chiming in on the interaction.

Poirier is scheduled to face Makhachev, the reigning UFC lightweight champion, for the latter's championship at UFC 302 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, USA, on June 1.

During the pre-fight press conference on Thursday (May 30, 2024), America's Poirier and Russia's Makhachev were largely cordial. Nevertheless, during their face-off at the end, Poirier used the term "motherf**ker" while asserting that he'll knock Makhachev out.

The champion expressed his disapproval of 'The Diamond's' usage of the term, and their face-off escalated, with the UFC personnel separating them. Episode 5 of the 'UFC 302 Embedded: Vlog Series' featured a closer look at the words they exchanged onstage.

Watch their verbal exchange below (8:58):

In Episode 6 of the 'UFC 302 Embedded: Vlog Series,' it was shown that after the official weigh-ins, Poirier apologized to Makhachev backstage over his using the derogatory term. Implying that it was a run-of-the-mill trash talk term in the U.S. and that he didn't mean to disrespect Makhachev's family, 'The Diamond' said:

"It's still war, but I would never disrespect your family."

Makhachev seemed to accept the apology and stated:

"I am happy [to] understand what they mean because it's not good in our country. Maybe in yours, it's good, but in our country, it's not good."

Check out the footage of their conversation below:

Fight fans weighed in on the footage of Poirier and Makhachev apparently squashing their beef. Multiple fans praised Poirier, with one even noting that he likely doesn't want to engage in trash talk like his longtime rival Conor McGregor does, writing:

"Dustin does not want to be like Conor."

One fan opined that Makhachev was nice to begin with, but it was Poirier who misunderstood him and started the trash talk.

"Islam was nice at first, Dustin misunderstood and the trash talk started. They're normally very respectful"

Another fan tweeted:

"We're not in his country, he needs to stop crying"

Others expressed their respect for both combatants. A netizen highlighted that the heated face-off was due to the differences in their cultural backgrounds, which is what caused the misunderstanding over the term. A fan insinuated that Poirier's fear caused him to apologize, while another tweeted:

"pure class from Dustin. same as always"

Check out the screenshots of a few reactions below:

Screenshots of reactions

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Islam Makhachev addresses press conference face-off with Dustin Poirier

In an interview with Megan Olivi for ESPN MMA, UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev harked back to his fiery face-off against Dustin Poirier at the UFC 302 pre-fight press conference. The Dagestani MMA stalwart highlighted that he and Poirier talked about it after the official weigh-ins and resolved their differences that stemmed from 'The Diamond's' usage of the swear word.

Makhachev said:

"In the press conference, he say some bad words, but today after the official weigh-ins, we all fixed it."

Furthermore, Makhachev explained that he respects Poirier, who's a great fighter and a legend and has done a lot for the sport. Regardless, he signaled that he'll have to finish' The Diamond' when the octagon door closes on fight night.

Catch Makhachev's comments below (0:13):