We are entering the final chapter of Dustin Poirier’s illustrious UFC career. As UFC 318 lands in New Orleans on July 19th, it brings with it Poirier’s farewell fight. ‘The Diamond’ will make his final walk to the Octagon to face none other than ‘BMF’ champion Max Holloway. With decades of experience between them, the two legends are set for an epic clash that promises Poirier a storybook ending. In the lead-up, both Poirier and Holloway have exchanged heartfelt messages ahead of their final war.

While discussing with The Pat McAfee Show, Poirier emphasized that he couldn’t have asked for a better opponent for his final fight in Max Holloway, “I didn’t know if it was going to all come together, but it did. July 19th, me and Max Holloway are going to fight five rounds, main event, pay-per-view, for his current BMF title.”

He further added, “And hell yeah, Max is a legend. I said legends only. There’s not a better guy I can think to fight in my retirement fight. I was his first fight in the UFC back in 2012, and he’s going to be my last fight in the UFC. So it’s an honor. He’s a legend, a former champion, undisputed, current BMF champion. So we’re going to put on another war.”  For Max Holloway, this marks an opportunity to establish his presence in the lightweight division.

On the other hand, it will serve as a farewell for Dustin Poirier. After the fight was announced, ‘The ‘BMF’ belt holder took his Instagram handle to upload several photos of them together with a caption that read, “Honored to be The Diamond’s Last Dance.”

Responding to Holloway’s message, Poirier commented, “Legends Only. It’s an Honor.” It’s quite ironic that Poirier was Holloway’s first opponent in the UFC, and now, after all these years, Holloway will be his final one. Their story began 13 years ago at UFC 143 when a 20-year-old Hawaiian marked his promotional Debut. At that time, Poirier was just a rising featherweight prospect.

In the battle of two soon-to-be-legends, the Louisiana native clinched the victory by way of triangle armbar in the first round. They again met inside the Octagon seven years later, at a time when the interim lightweight title was on the line. At that time, Holloway was holding the featherweight gold as Poirier was looking to earn the lightweight gold. In the battle that carried on for five rounds, ‘The Diamond’ won by way of unanimous decision. Years later, they are about to run it back again and for the final time. Interestingly, according to Dustin Poirier, Max Holloway was not his first choice.

Dustin Poirier was thinking of other choices than Max Holloway

A third showdown between Dustin Poirier and ‘Blessed’ Max Holloway for the “BMF” belt would be an absolute gift for fight fans — but it’s not the path ‘The Diamond’ had circled. Interestingly, the former interim lightweight champion wanted to settle his business with Justin Gaethje in a trilogy fight or challenge Ilia Topuria for a fight.

“I was asking Hunter [Campbell] for Gaethje, because we’re 1-1 I wanted to close out that trilogy,” Poirier told MMA Junkie. “For some reason they really wanted this fight. That’s cool because I respect [Max] for my last fight…When [Ilia] said he was going to 155, I texted the UFC and said ‘hey, let me know what’s going on with this guy. ’ But they never entertained it, they told me it’s not happening and they wanted Max.”

Dustin Poirier already has two wins over Max Holloway, but can he turn it to 3-0, or will this be Max Holloway’s redemption? What are your thoughts on their final battle? State your opinion in the comments below.