If Dustin Poirier wants to prove himself as a top-ten pound-for-pound fighter, he should fight Colby Covington at welterweight.
Covington, a lifelong welterweight, urged Poirier, a former two-time lightweight title challenger, to stop picking on ‘cripple’ Nate Diaz and fight him at 170 pounds instead.
Covington says it’s imperative that Poirier accepts the matchup after ‘Chaos’ called out the Poirier family following his lopsided decision victory over Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272.
“Dustin was the one who said it was ‘on sight’, man. I didn’t have to use Dustin’s name, he used my name in interviews to get exposure and to add value to his fight, Covington, who used to train with Poirier at American Top Team (ATT) told Submission Radio in a recent interview.
“His coach is saying that Dustin is gonna be a bigger and better welterweight than he was a lightweight, and he’s having a hard time making lightweight anymore. So why is he trying to pick on the guy in the corner who has a lisp, that’s mentally handicapped and crippled? Nate Diaz is crippled, mentally and physically, that guy shouldn’t even be fighting anymore.”
“Dustin claims he’s this top 10 pound for pound fighter, well okay, if you’re pound for pound and you wanna come to 170, come prove it. I’m the pound-for-pound people’s champion. The biggest thing about Dustin Poirier is that if he wants to keep any honor and dignity for himself, he needs to come fight me. I’ve called out his wife, his family, his team, his friend. Man, if you have any respect for yourself, you have to come and at least try. Be a trier, Dustin.”
Poirier has yet to respond to Covington’s latest comments but the Louisianan said Colby’s UFC 272 post-fight interview reeked of desperation.
He told MMA reporter Heidi Androl at the UFC Vegas 50 post-fight show: “It’s cute. It’s all good. It is what it is. People want big fights. That’s a big fight. He wants a big fight. Obviously, he’s not in line for the title fight. He lost twice to the champ, so he probably needs a few more wins. But I would think if you want to get back to that strap, you got to fight welterweight contenders.”
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