It seems that if the UFC comes calling about a Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje rematch soon, “The Diamond” would be open to the idea this year.
Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje from UFC on Fox 29 was, arguably, the fight of the year for 2018. Before the duo would go on to win interim titles in the company, they tore into each other over four rounds in a main event war to improve their standing in the UFC lightweight rankings.
The fight won by Poirier will go down as a night that furthered both men’s impressive legacies in the division and in the MMA world leader. For years since that night in April 2018, fans have clamored for a rematch.
Related: UFC welterweight rankings – Leon Edwards solidifies top spot with UFC 286 win
However, both have gone on parallel journeys to building Hall-of-Fame resumes without each other. But it seems that a long-awaited second Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje matchup could be in the cards this year if the UFC wanted to bring their journeys back to each other.
In a Tuesday interview with Fan Sided, Dustin Poirier was asked about the possibility of a rematch soon, and the 34-year-old was down for the idea for one specific reason.
“It’s a fight that makes me nervous. When I hear a name and I get nervous it’s motivation — ame thing with Chandler. When I heard Chandler’s name when they called me with Michael Chandler, I was nervous because I knew the dangers of those kinds of fights and that’s what motivates me. Same thing with Justin. If they do call me and he’s the name that they say, maybe it happens. We’ll see.”
– Dustin Poirier [h/t MMA Fighting]
Dustin Poirier is coming off a November submission victory over Chandler at UFC 281. He has won four of his last five with his only defeat being in 2021 to former division king Charles Oliveira. Justin Gaethje returned to the Octagon this month at UFC 286 and scored a win over ranked talent Rafael Fiziev by majority decision. “The Highlight” has split his last four fights with his losses being to Oliveira and lightweight legend Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje II makes a lot of sense for both with each man likely being one big win away from landing a title fight with current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev.