Islam Makhachev aims to further his storied legacy in the UFC by overcoming Dustin Poirier at UFC 302. Arman Tsarukyan coveted and attained a fight offer to take on the champion after his UFC 300 victory over Charles Oliveira. However, the Armenian turned the offer down due to the quick turnaround. Nevertheless, that fight could be down the line and the lightweight king has to turn his attention to Poirier first.

And Islam Makhachev is confident of victory against the New Orleans native. Before his UFC 302 clash against Dustin Poirier materialized, Islam Makhachev gave an interview to ‘MMA Junkie’, where he was asked about what would happen when they get in the octagon. Makhachev, confident as ever, had a clear game plan, in line with his Dagestani roots. Khabib Nurmagomedov employed a similar tactic to great effect against ‘ The Diamond’.

Islam Makhachev to borrow a page from Khabib Nurmagomedov’s book

“Same thing. I will take him down. He will try to give me a guillotine and I will take his back and choke him. That’s it,” the Dagestani champion said. The lightweight champion had taken note of Poirier’s proclivity for guillotine chokes. This desire to employ this specific choke came to light recently too. Poirier used it liberally (and to very little effect) in his bout against Benoit Saint-Denis. Despite his corner repeatedly advising against it, the American tried to gain the upper hand through the move.

The Dagestani is the clear favorite going into the bout. Poirier has arguably much more miles on his body. He also lost two of his last four fights and has to turn his focus quickly to an arduous task. Fears over Poirier’s conditioning and fitness have also emerged as a talking point as he comes into the bout.

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Arman Tsarukyan, who defeated Charles Oliveira at UFC 300, turned the bout down precisely because of these fears. To be fair, the turnaround for the Armenian was even steeper than Poirier’s. Plus, while the UFC 299 victor claimed he took little damage during his last UFC outing, this was not the case for Tsarukyan. He engaged in a war for three rounds against Oliveira and attained a split-decision victory. In fact, the unavailability of other top contenders has granted ‘The Diamond’ a title shot.

Poirier arrives as the right person at the right time

Islam Makhachev fighting Dustin Poirier in June at UFC 302 is just another example of the significance of timing in the sport; and how everything can change after just one fight. The lightweight champion, who last fought in October 2023, was eager to fight in June. And the best candidate for the opponent turned out to be Dustin Poirier, who will fight for the 155-pound title more because of the fortuitous timing than anything else. Even Makhachev had said he doesn’t think Poirier deserves a title shot but since there was no one else available, he was left with no choice.

The challenger had found himself in no-man’s land after losing to Justin Gaethje via a devastating head kick in their UFC 291 BMF title bout last year. However, he reminded the UFC world just how good he is by paying his dues. ‘Diamond’ knocked out the young, dangerous up-and-coming prospect, Benoit Saint-Denis, at UFC 299, showing why he is a UFC legend. And this, along with none of the top contenders being free, led the UFC to book Poirier against the champ for June.

And despite all the disadvantages ‘Diamond’ faces going into UFC 302, if there is one thing any UFC fan knows, it is that nothing can be said for certain until the two men get in the octagon and the doors are locked behind them. Stranger things than Poirier possibly defeating Makhachev in June have happened after all. Who do you think emerges victorious in the blockbuster bout? Do you see Makhachev’s idea of emulating Khabib come to fruition?