Dustin Poirier was caught off guard by his last fight offer.
‘The Diamond’ returns to action at UFC 300, where he will take on the #11 ranked Benoit Saint-Denis. There was some confusion on whether or not this fight would go through, but Poirier is now officially locked and loaded for this five-round co-main event on Mar. 9.
Before facing Saint-Denis, Poirier went through a murderer’s row at lightweight. The former interim champion has fought the likes of Max Holloway, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor (twice at 155), Charles Oliveira, Michael Chandler and Justin Gaethje, also twice. That’s just to name a few.
Poirier Thought A ‘Legacy Fight’ Was In The Cards For Him
Coming off a knockout loss to Justin Gaethje in July, Poirier was expecting another big star to welcome him back to the Octagon. Certainly not Benoit Saint-Denis, as he explains on ‘The MMA Hour‘.
“I was surprised,” Poirier said of getting Saint-Denis as an opponent. “I thought it was gonna be a more well known fighter. Cause in my head I was like, maybe a legacy fight. Maybe a RDA [Rafael Dos Anjos], maybe another former champion, I don’t know, just something. I thought the offer I’d get from the UFC would be something more like that. I needed something to get me up in the morning.”
‘Somebody Gave Me My Shot’… Now Poirier Returns The Favor To BSD
Poirier has no problem settling for the French finisher, who looks to make a name for himself at UFC 299.
“I respect this sport and I honor this sport,” Poirier continued. “I’m 35 years old now. This guy’s a young hungry lion who’s on the streak, I think he finished five fights in a row. Somebody gave me my shot to crack in. So, I respect the game and that’s what I’m doing. March 9th, buy the pay-per-view and we’ll see. We’ll find out.”
‘This Is A Very Dangerous Fight’
This fight itself might be seen as a step back for Poirier as he’s been facing top 5 fighters for several years. Regardless, Poirier isn’t overlooking Saint-Denis one bit. He’s well aware of the danger ‘The God Of War’ brings inside the Octagon.
Dustin Poirier welcomes the challenge.
“A guy not a huge name here in America, but a very dangerous guy who can beat anybody in the top 10, in the top 15. This is a very dangerous fight,” Poirier said of Saint-Denis. “This isn’t an easy fight. This is hard. This is a hard style to deal with. Constant pressure on the fence, shooting, good jiu-jitsu, big punches, big kicks. here’s a lot of weapons that he uses and a very dangerous fight.
“But, those are the fights I wanna be involved in. Dangerous fights… I want to fight. I wanna be put in a fight. Take me there.”
