One of the biggest fan favorites in the UFC will hang up his gloves on Saturday night, but not before he tries to go out with one last victory. Dustin Poirier is set to retire after his clash with Max Holloway for the BMF championship, and he gets to do it in front of his New Orleans fans at UFC 318.
Poirier holds two previous wins over Holloway, but has never reached the same level of championship accomplishments as Holloway. Poirier has never held a full UFC title, having to settle for an interim lightweight title win against Holloway back in April 2019.
Poirier even came up short in his first bid for the BMF title when he was knocked out by Justin Gaethje. Holloway would take that belt off Gaethje with a brilliant performance at UFC 300, and now he and Poirier get to meet again, this time with a title that symbolizes what fans have thought of both men throughout their careers.
“Some of these guys have characters or masks that they wear,” Poirier told CBS Sports. “Whether it’s fight week or I’m in the grocery store, it’s the same thing. I try to follow my moral compass and do what I think is right, and be a good person. If people appreciate that, I appreciate them for recognizing it.”
The main card will also feature some top fighters from various weight classes. The co-main event pits middleweight against each other as rising contender Roman Kopylov takes on former title challenger Paulo Costa. The always talkative and entertaining Kevin Holland is back when he takes on Daniel Rodriguez at welterweight. And former two-division Bellator champion Patricio Pitbull looks to get his first win under the UFC banner when he takes on Dan Ige at featherweight.
UFC 318 Fight Card and Odds
- Max Holloway (c) -130 vs. Dustin Poirier +110, lightweights, “BMF” title
- Roman Kopylov -240 vs. Paulo Costa +200, middleweights
- Kevin Holland -450 vs. Daniel Rodriguez, welterweights
- Dan Ige -210 vs. Patricio Pitbull +175, featherweights
- Daniel Zellhuber -550 vs. Michael Johnson +400, lightweights
- Vinicius Oliveira -165 vs. Kyler Phillips +140, bantamweights
- Brendan Allen -205 vs. Marvin Vettori +170, middleweights
- Francisco Prado -140 vs. Nikolay Veretennikov +120, welterweights
- Ateba Gautier -550 vs. Robert Valentin +400, middleweights
- Islam Dulatov -600 vs. Adam Fugitt +430, welterweights
- Jimmy Crute -280 vs. Marcin Prachnio +230, light heavyweights
- Ryan Spann -220 vs. Lukasz Brzeski +180, light heavyweights
- Brunno Ferreira -700 vs. Jackson McVey +500, middleweights
- Carli Judice -300 vs. Nicolle Caliari +240, women’s flyweights
With such a massive main event on tap, the crew at CBS Sports went ahead with predictions and picks for the main card. Here are your pick makers: Brent Brookhouse, Brian Campbell, Shakiel Mahjouri, Michael Mormile and Brandon Wise.
