Dustin Poirier gave a good account of himself in his bid to take the lightweight title from Islam Makhachev at UFC 303 before being submitted in the final round, but picked up a bunch of injuries along the way.
After the fight ‘The Diamond’ was already aware that he’d sustained some significant damage, suspecting that his nose, which had suffered extensive damage in the past, was broken, while he also believed there might be an issue with his knee – and he was right on both accounts, but it turns out there was also a broken rib in the mix too.
“Nose is broken bad, rib is broken, and my ACL is partially torn,” Poirier wrote on X. “Fight life.”
There was some debate about whether Poirier’s nose was broken from a knee that Makhachev landed, or from an accidental headbutt, and Poirier has clarified he believes it was the latter.
“Knee hit my face,” Poirier responded to a fan. “It was the headbutt before. It was accidental, but it hurt.”
The 35-year-old Poirier had suggested both before and after the fight that there’s a good possibility that he’ll now retire, and his latest injuries might reaffirm that decision.
However, he’s still not officially called time on his career, and there are still big opportunities awaiting him if he does decide to continue competing, including former long-time featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski having already suggested this week that they could lock horns later in the year if he’s up for it.
