Heading into his UFC 299 fight against Benoit Saint-Denis, Dustin Poirier finds himself in a position he’s not normally in.
For only the eighth time in his 29-fight UFC tenure, Dustin Poirier is heading into UFC 299 as an underdog against Benoit Saint-Denis.
The last time ‘The Diamond’ was listed as a plus-money underdog was when he faced Conor McGregor back at UFC 257 in 2021. Since then he hasn’t entered the Octagon as the unfavoured fighter.
The Louisianan’s last fight is one of the main reasons why he finds himself in this unnatural position. At UFC 291 in July of last year, Poirier was viciously knocked out by Justin Gaethje, suffering only his third loss by KO. Because time isn’t on Poirier’s side, fans believe that could’ve been the start of his demise.
A fighter who has suffered a similar fate recently is Tony Ferguson and his downfall was sparked by a loss to Justin Gaethje too.
Too tall a task for Benoit Saint-Denis?
The 28-year-old’s well-documented past of being a member of the French Special Forces has resulted in him being an extremely popular fighter amongst fans.
The Frenchman is undoubtedly one of the most fierce prospects in the UFC, across all weight classes but this stands as a big leap up the rankings for ‘God Of War’.
His last fight came against Matt Frevola, who is not currently ranked in the top 15 of the lightweight division. Before that, he fought Thiago Moises in Paris, but again Moises is an unranked 155lber. Having said that, the sole loss in his career came against Elizeu Zaleski at welterweight and that fight was on late notice.
Ultimately Benoit Saint-Denis has not experienced the moments Dustin Poirier has, inside the cage. But his life outside of the confines of the Octagon is what could separate him from any regular contender. Maybe he is just simply built for moments like this, because of his heroic past.
Does Dustin Poirier have anything to gain?
Dustin Poirier has one last title run in him, so the 35-year-old will hope that he has enough experience to halt the momentum of Saint-Denis. It seems to me that recency bias could’ve taken control here, and we may see Dustin Poirier put on a signature performance that leaves us asking ‘How does he keep doing it?’.
When this fight was announced, the MMA fanbase was surprised that it was able to come to fruition considering the gulf in the gap between their rankings.
Although there is a lot to lose for the 35-year-old in this one, there is still an awful lot to gain. Benoit Saint-Denis is emerging as one of the most interesting prospects in the sport, and in Europe, is growing into a bit of a star.
If Dustin can put on a patented Poirier performance, he will be able to once again revisit his dreams of becoming an undisputed UFC champion. With it being a five-round co-main event, I see Poirier doing just that.