Dustin Poirier explains rationale behind choosing Conor McGregor trilogy over UFC lightweight title fight

Dustin Poirier explained his rationale behind choosing the Conor McGregor trilogy over competing in the UFC lightweight title fight instead.

Poirier knocked out McGregor at UFC 257 earlier this year to become the de facto No. 1 contender at 155lbs. When UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov decided to vacate his belt and retire, the original plan was to have Poirier fight Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title. Instead, Poirier chose to fight McGregor for the third time, which led to Oliveira fighting Michael Chandler in the main event of UFC 262 and winning the belt.

Speaking to ESPN, Poirier explained why he made the decision he did to fight McGregor at UFC 264 instead of fighting for the belt next. According to “The Diamond,” this was a very easy decision for him because, financially, it didn’t make sense to fight for the belt next.

“I made that decision pretty easily. If I’m the best in the world then I’m going to beat Conor and fight for the belt. It’s like doubling down on yourself. I’m a gambling man and I believe in my skills in fighting, so I just doubled down,” Poirier said (h/t MMA Weekly).

“Me fighting for the belt, I wouldn’t get pay-per-view (revenue). I would have gotten a base salary of probably not even a third of my base salary for this fight. It just doesn’t make sense. I’m a prizefighter. I’m going to make six, seven, ten times the amount of money to fight Conor again – like I said, I’m a father, a husband, and I have priorities. I wouldn’t have gotten pay-per-view points for the title fight. The Conor fight, I have pay-per-view points built-in. There’s no question (it was the right choice).”

Do you think Dustin Poirier made the right choice in choosing to fight Conor McGregor in the trilogy rather than fighting for the belt next?