Dana White has confirmed that UFC 318 will take place in New Orleans purely because the event’s headliner Dustin Poirier asked for it to mark the final fight of the Louisiana native’s career.
It’s been a decade since the UFC last visited the city, so to agree to his request just goes to show how highly regarded and respected Poirier is in the company.
“Throughout the world, Dustin Poirier is a big star for us,” White told WDSU in Louisiana. “He’s accomplished a lot in the sport.
“This is for him, to be honest with you. This is for him. He wanted to have his last fight and end his career in New Orleans so here we are.”
The 36-year-old Poirier won the UFC interim-lightweight title back with a unanimous decision win over Max Holloway back in 2019, but over the years he came up short on three separate occasions in his attempts to win the undisputed title.
Of course a career-defining moment for Poirier came in 2021 when he defeated Conor McGregor by TKO twice in the space of six months, propelling his stardom to new heights in the process.
And beyond that, Poirier’s long run in the UFC also saw him defeat the likes of Justin Gaethje, Michael Chandler, Eddie Alvarez, Dan Hooker, Anthony Pettis and many more.
As such, when all’s said and done, White believes that Poirier has done enough to be considered one of the greats.
“He’s ranked No. 5 in the world right now in the lightweight division,” White said. “He’s a guy who’s held his position in the top 10 in the sport for a very long time. He’s achieved a lot.
“He’s one of the all-time greats. Thousands of people have fought in the UFC, I don’t know where I could rank him but he’s one of the all-time greats.”
And of course Poirier will have a chance to add one more accolade to his legacy when he rematches Max Holloway in a fight for the symbolic ‘BMF’ title at UFC 318.
