Dustin Poirier has officially teased that he may cut his retirement short following Justin Gaethje‘s championship-winning performance in Washington, DC. Following what can be considered one of the biggest upsets in the promotion’s history, UFC by Paramount+ asked ‘The Diamond’ if he would consider coming out of retirement for a trilogy bout against his former rival.

“Me and Justin shook hands in Vegas the last time I saw him,” Poirier answered. “We watched fights by each other and we were like, let’s not do this again. He said, let’s not put our families through this again.

“He said, I’m cool with the one-on-one if you are. And we shook hands on it. So I can’t, now I can’t, you know, that was man-to-man shaking hands, looking in the eyes. I can’t try to chase a fight.”

However, when further pressed on if a hefty $20 million payday from the UFC would change his mind, ‘The Diamond’ could no longer hide his competitive spirit.

“Sign the contract, big boy. Mike Tyson on him,” Poirier joked. “Of course, if it was realistic, probably.”

However, it is worth noting that despite being rivals, the two are also very good friends in real life. In fact, ‘The Diamond’ also congratulated Justin Gaethje after the big win on the South Lawn, but that too came with a twist as he again confirmed that he would come out of retirement for the trilogy bout when asked by a fan.

“Yes but first things first, @Justin_Gaethje you are a savage!!!” Poirier wrote on X. “Congratulations on everything.

“It was inspiring to be there in person and watch you put on a masterful performance and turn your dream into reality, Undisputed!! Nothing but respect for you 🫡”

The rivalry between Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier remains one of the most fascinating sagas in UFC history. ‘The Diamond’ stopped the reigning lightweight champion in the fourth round of their first fight at UFC on FOX 29 in 2018, but Justin Gaethje avenged the loss five years later at UFC 291 by knocking Dustin Poirier out with a head kick to win the BMF title.

With the series tied 1-1, a trilogy bout for the undisputed lightweight title would surely be a promoter’s dream. And now, the opportunity for a trilogy opened up after Justin Gaethje shocked the world on UFC White House.

‘The Highlight’ went on to physically break Ilia Topuria over four bloody and brutal rounds that forced the Spanish-Georgian’s corner to throw in the towel, handing Justin Gaethje the undisputed lightweight belt.

In addition to winning undisputed lightweight gold, ‘The Highlight’ benefited the most from Dana White‘s massive live-event bonus structure. At the post-fight press conference, the head honcho revealed that Justin Gaethje received $825,000 in bonuses for winning Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night.

He also became the only man to win every single title in Dana White’s promotion. After holding the BMF and interim lightweight title, he now has the undisputed lightweight title as well as the specially designed one-off “Freedom” championship belt introduced for the UFC White House event.

While a championship trilogy with Justin Gaethje remains the big demand for fight fans, ‘The Diamond’ has left the door open for a few other big names if he decides to return to the drug-testing pool.

Justin Gaethje is not the only fight capable of bringing Dustin Poirier out of retirement

Chief among the big-name targets for Dustin Poirier is his long-standing promotional rival, Nate Diaz. ‘The Diamond’ recently stated that he would gladly put the gloves back on if the UFC could finally secure the much-awaited matchup that fell through back in 2018.

“My invitation is still out there, at 170lbs,” he said on the Deep Waters Podcast. “I will go back into the drug testing pool, I will knock Nate Diaz completely out.”

Furthermore, Dustin Poirier isn’t ready to put his heated rivalry with Conor McGregor on hold either, especially ahead of the Irishman’s much-anticipated summer return against Max Holloway at UFC 329.

Despite dominating their trilogy 2-1, ‘The Diamond’ recently claimed on the Weighing In podcast that a fourth battle with the MMA legend might convince him to cancel his retirement.

“If it was realistic and they called me and said, ‘Hey,’ I would probably get back in the drug-testing protocol and get licensed again, yeah,” he said on the Weighing In podcast.

Their third fight ended abruptly before the second round began due to ‘The Notorious’ accidentally breaking his leg, which sidelined him for years. As a result, a furious Conor McGregor famously stated that their blood feud was far from over while being interviewed by Joe Rogan on the Octagon floor.

Now, between the appeal of putting a definitive end to the McGregor rivalry, a legacy bout with Nate Diaz, and an undisputed title trilogy against a newly enriched Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier’s retirement might just be a temporary pit stop after all.