There is plenty at stake as Max Holloway and Dustin Poirier clash for a third time in the UFC 318 main event, with the BMF title hanging in the balance.
Holloway claimed the title with an outstanding performance and emphatic finish of Justin Gaethje last year at UFC 300. He moved back down to featherweight following that win with designs on ascending to the throne once again, only to be felled by Ilia Topuria.
Poirier competes in his home state for the first time since that June 2015 fight card, where he quickly stopped Yancy Medeiros. Following his second-round victory over Benoit Saint Denis last March, the 36-year-old came up short in his bid to wrest the lightweight title away from Islam Makhachev at UFC 302.
Order UFC 318: Holloway vs Poirier 3
These two are intimately familiar with one another, having fought twice in the past. While their first meeting came early in their careers and on short notice, they got reacquainted in an interim lightweight title bout back at UFC 236, with Poirier claiming a unanimous decision win. This is the final walk to the Octagon for the beloved veteran competitor, and Holloway is the ideal opponent for the moment, as he looks to defend his title and spoil Poirier’s swan song while gaining a measure of revenge.
No matter how this one shakes out, it promises to be exhilarating, and a fitting way for one of the most all-action fighters in UFC history to ride off into the sunset