Only a handful of fighters can claim to be as widely beloved as Dustin Poirier; meaning it’ll be a sad day when ‘The Diamond’ eventually hangs up his gloves for good.
Luckily, the former interim lightweight champion and celebrated ‘Diamond of Louisiana’ has repeatedly teased that he’ll have one more epic fight in the UFC before calling it quits.
As fans continue to speculate on who Dustin Poirier’s final opponent could be, ‘The Last Stylebender’ has now shared a touching message to the man whom he once claimed UFC championship gold alongside.
Israel Adesanya sends touching tribute to Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier
‘The Last Stylebender’ won the interim middleweight title on the same night that Dustin Poirier claimed interim lightweight gold – a shared achievement that Israel Adesanya still holds near and dear to this day.
Earlier this week, a fan-made video of Dustin Poirier’s best UFC moments was shared on X in response to a thread that asked users to define ‘what it meant to be a legend’.
“Fought 8 Former Champions. Has most FOTN’s in UFC History. Has 15 finishes in the UFC. Never lost 2 fights in a row. Been in the UFC for 14 Conservative Years. Only man to fight both Khabib and Islam. Only man to KO McGregor… This is THE definition of a LEGEND.”
That hype video eventually caught the attention of Israel Adesanya, who responded by sending a touching message to Poirier about that famous night in Atlanta, Georgia.
“Whenever I said UFC 243 was my first title defense, some get salty. I consider my “Interim” title win a title win, any fight after that is considered a title defense and a unification. Two things can be true at the same time.
“Dustin Poirier and I won our belts on the same night! “Undisputed” or not he was the champion, y’all can’t take that away from him. Head high my guy, let’s strive!”
A poignant message from one UFC icon to another – and the wider MMA community couldn’t agree more with Adesanya’s remarks.
Many of the comments underneath his message read to the tune of “Well said,” “Greatness recognizes greatness,” and “Legends supporting another legend, love to see it.”
Dustin Poirier wants a homecoming send-off for his final UFC fight
Whilst we still don’t know when Dustin Poirier’s final UFC fight will arrive, ‘The Diamond’ has revealed that he’s been pushing for a homecoming send-off in New Orleans.
“I’ve actually been having calls every week with the UFC,” Poirier told The Schmo earlier this month: “But it’s looking like summer in New Orleans is close to happening for my retirement fight.
“A pay-per-view in New Orleans this summer would be incredible. That’s what I’m pushing forward. That’s what the UFC’s working towards, and things are getting pretty close. Lay down the gloves where it all started in Louisiana, it would be an honor for me.”
Poirier recently shut down rumors that his retirement bout would be against Paddy Pimblett, refuting the speculation as his final fight will be “legends only.”
“That’s an interesting fight but not for my retirement fight, you know, it’s legends only man,” he stated in an interview with Jim Rome.
“I’m done, man. I have 50-something cage fights. Like I said, I still have something to give, there’s a lot of opportunities and some big fights that can be made but I’ve just been doing it so long and I’m in a place with my other ventures where I want to be home in a regular routine.
“I’ve given this sport a lot and I think I’ve given it enough,” he rightly acknowledged.