Dustin Poirier releases statement following UFC 269 loss to Charles Oliveira

Dustin Poirier has released a statement following his third round submission loss to Charles Oliveira at Saturday night’s UFC 269 event.

Poirier (28-7 MMA) and Oliveira (32-8 MMA) collided in the headliner of last weekend’s pay-per-view event at T-Mobile Arena.

Dustin Poirier had entered the highly anticipated title bout on a three-fight winning streak. ‘The Diamond’ was coming off back-to-back TKO victories over Conor McGregor in his most previous efforts.

Meanwhile, Charles Oliveira had captured the promotions vacant 155 lb title back in May, when he stopped Michael Chandler with a TKO in the second round. That win had marked ‘Do Bronx’s’ ninth in a row, with eight of those respective victories coming by finish.

Saturday night’s ‘Oliveira vs. Poirier’ main event produced one of the craziest opening rounds in UFC history. Dustin Poirier was able to drop Charles Oliveira on two occasions and appeared to be cruising towards his much desired title win. However, in round two ‘Do Bronx’ was able to score an early takedown and road out the round in top position while dropping elbows. Then, in round three, Oliveira was able to take the back of ‘The Diamond’ and promptly locked in a rear-naked choke to finish the contest.

Charles Oliveira stops Dustin Poirier at UFC 269

In the immediate aftermath of the loss Dustin Poirier admitted he wasn’t sure if he had the desire to “claw and climb” the lightweight ladder again.

“I can do anything I put my mind to. I can fight for another belt. I can go on another streak. I can claw and climb and get back to wherever I want to be. It’s just, ‘Do I want to?’ That’s the question I’ve got to look in the mirror and answer. Do I want to do it again? Do I want to go down that road again? That answer will come in the next couple days or couple weeks.”

While Dustin Poirier has still not made a firm decision regarding his fighting future, he did take to social media this afternoon where he issued the following statement to his fans.

What a beautiful journey, the ups and the downs. Im grateful for all of it

— The Diamond (@DustinPoirier) December 13, 2021

“What a beautiful journey, the ups and the downs. Im grateful for all of it.” – Poirier wrote.

Who would you like to see Dustin Poirier fight next if he does decide to return to the Octagon? Share your thoughts in the comment section PENN Nation!