More than seven years later, Poirier and Holloway collided with the interim lightweight title on the line. In the intervening years, Holloway embarked on a legendary 13-fight winning streak, including title fight wins over Anthony Pettis, José Aldo and Brian Ortega. “Blessed” was now in the conversation as the greatest featherweight of all-time, and he had double-champ status in his sights after handing “T-City” his first professional loss at UFC 231.
Meanwhile, Poirier had found greener pastures in the lightweight division, collecting wins over the likes of Pettis, Justin Gaethje and Eddie Alvarez. After defeating Alvarez in an epic rematch, Poirier made it known that he deserved a title shot after beating three former champions (Gaethjewas a champion in another organization before joining the UFC roster).
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With Khabib Nurmagomedov sidelined, Holloway and Poirier made the walk for an epic five-round back-and-forth war. Poirier got out ahead first, cracking Holloway with heavy punches and rattling the Hawaiian. However, Holloway and his legendary chin held sturdy, and eventually, Holloway’s volume and activity started to overwhelm the Louisiana native.
The power difference was evident, though. As the two traded shots, Holloway was peppering Poirier while “The Diamond” warranted bigger reactions whenever one of his thudding punches landed, swinging momentum his way each time. With Holloway gaining momentum in the third and fourth rounds, Poirier was able to connect with a strike on Holloway before the penultimate round concluded, opening up a gnarly cut on the Hawaiian. The fifth round didn’t see any dip in action, and Poirier relied on his physicality to smother Holloway and wrest the judges’ decision, handing Holloway his first loss since 2013. The victory set Poirier up for a unification bout with Khabib Numragomedov while Holloway returned to featherweight to defend his belt against Frankie Edgar.
