Dustin Poirier appears to be leaning towards calling time on his career after his fifth round submission loss to lightweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 302, but he he admits there’s still some doubt in his mind.
“I still don’t know,” Poirier told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “I can’t say I’ll never fight again, but I just don’t know the reason. What am I going to fight for? To get into a battle? I love that, but I’ve taken some lumps over the years. It has to be for something. And maybe that’s something I’ll realize in the coming weeks, but I’m just taking it one day at a time.
“I’m leaning towards being done. For sure. Especially with getting the title fight, how many more times would I need to fight to put myself back in position to fight for the world title? I don’t know. And like I said, I’m not going to do it again, I’m not going to fight five more times to try and earn another title shot. I’m in a weird spot and I don’t know how to explain it or what decision to make. I’m just taking it day by day and seeing what comes with my mind changing and just to see how I feel.”
Part of what’s keeping Poirier from committing to hanging up his gloves is his belief that he’s still one of the best fighters in the world, but at the same time he knows that at 35-year-old time is now his enemy in that regard.
“The only thing that makes me not want to walk away is because I know I can still compete with these guys and I feel like I’m still getting better. It’s not like I’m slowing down that much or age is catching up with me. My reaction time is still good, I feel good, and I know I can beat these guys. And say I do leave, a year from now, it might not be the same if I ever try to come back. I’m scared to miss what I have left to give, but also I don’t want to give too much of myself.
“I want to give more because I know that I have a short window to give the best of myself, but also I’ve given so much of myself to the sport for so long, it’s just, where do I draw the line? That’s a battle I have to figure out with myself.”
