Max Holloway took advantage of his last chance to beat Dustin Poirier with a unanimous decision win over The Diamond at UFC 318 in his opponent’s retirement fight in New Orleans on Saturday night.
Holloway drew first blood. Blessed cracked Poirier with a quick one-two combination that he snuck through Poirier’s guard. The Diamond worked his way to the feet, but not before his opponent took the first big moment of the fight.
Poirier may have worked his way back to the feet, but Holloway wasn’t done putting on the pressure. He set the tone early and followed up in the second round to remind everyone he wasn’t just there to wish Poirier well in retirement.
Riding out the second rush from Holloway led to Poirier’s first moment of the fight. He unleashed a flurry and put Holloway on the ground with a hook before jumping a guillotine attempt to complicate the score for Round 2.
Poirier found success with his jab in the third round and made a case to win the round. However, Holloway entered the final frame with a lead on most cards.
Ultimately, Poirier wasn’t able to put together a final push to win the retirement bout, but the two fighters didn’t disappoint in putting together a fun scrap.
It’s a huge win for Holloway and a bit of a disappointment for Poirier. The 36-year-old made it clear that this was his last fight. The opportunity to fight in his home state of Louisiana against a fighter he has seen two other times in his career set the stage for a perfect goodbye.
Unfortunately for him, Holloway was a little more game this time around.
However, it is a fitting end for one of the best action fighters of an era. Poirier never captured undisputed UFC gold, but he did win the interim lightweight championship with a win over Holloway in 2019.
Still, he wound up with 10 Fight of the Night appearances and an additional four Performance of the Night bonuses in his career. With wins over Conor McGregor (twice), Holloway (twice), Anthony Pettis, Eddie Alvarez and Michael Chandler, he beat his fair share of world champions.
Poirier was vocal about this being his final fight throughout the build-up. Win or lose against Holloway, he was prepared to walk away on his own terms.
“I’m not getting forced out of this,” he said, per Greg Rosenstein of NBC Sports. “I’m choosing to walk away, and that’s very important to me.”
Holloway doesn’t look poised to leave the sport anytime soon. Holloway was looking to bounce back strong after a knockout loss to Ilia Topuria his last time out.
“The only message that I’m trying to send is I’m still here,” Holloway said ahead of the fight. “I know this is Dustin’s retirement fight, but his last fight was for a title. I still have title contentions in my mind.”
A rematch with Topuria at this juncture would be a hard sell, but Holloway has certainly positioned himself well for another crack at a top contender. Assuming he can put together another performance like this one it might not be long before he’s fighting for another title.
Source link
