Dustin Poirier: 'If I get in the cage with Eddie Alvarez, I'll take the belt'
Since moving to lightweight, Dustin Poirier has not only become one of the most thrilling fighters to watch on the UFC roster, but he's quickly risen up the ranks as a top challenger in arguably the deepest division in the sport.
Poirier has reeled off four straight wins with three of those finished by knockout or TKO including his last victory over Bobby Green at UFC 199. This latest streak came after Poirier was already considered a top five featherweight before the cut to get down to 145 pounds just became too taxing on his body.
This weekend, Poirier faces Michael Johnson in the main event as the UFC lands in Hidalgo, Texas for the first time and his confidence is soaring because he's no longer just the guy who goes out and earns 'Performance of the Night' for a vicious knockout — he's a legitimate threat to any top lightweights and that includes champion Eddie Alvarez.
"I've been fighting for a long time and you don't accidentally climb your way into the top of two different divisions. This is hard work and dedication at its finest. This is self belief. This is things happening the way they're supposed to," Poirier told FOX Sports.
At only 27 years old, Poirier is still reaching his athletic prime and now that he's no longer dehydrating his body to the point of exhaustion to get down to a lower weight class, he's feeling better than ever.
Now Poirier isn't just hitting guys with good punches and hurting them — he's knocking them unconscious and when you combine that with a new dedication to his overall technique, the Louisiana native is a threat to anybody atop the lightweight division rankings.
"I can knockout anybody. I'm getting stronger, my technique's getting better and I feel like I have my power back," Poirier said. "At 45, I feel like I was hurting guys with those shots but I wasn't putting them away every time. Now I know if I land a flush shot, these hands will seal the deal and leave a hell of a mess out there.
"I'm having fun again. The story of my last few fights is I'm having fun again, just enjoying this. Going out there and not looking to win on points. I go out there and push the pace and bring the violence."
Following his last win, Poirier hoped the UFC would give him a top five opponent so he was a little surprised that the name on the other end of the contract with Michael Johnson.
Johnson is currently riding a two-fight losing streak including his last bout against Nate Diaz and he's ranked lower than Poirier in the top 10. Still, Poirier knows Johnson is a tough opponent with wins over some of the top fighters in the division and a number next to his name doesn't take away what he'll bring into the cage on Saturday night.
"I was thinking a top five guy but to give him a little bit of credit, I thought he got robbed in that decision (against Beneil Dariush). That was B.S. He hung in there and fought a tough fight against Nate (Diaz) but when he fought Nate I think he was No. 5 or No. 6 and now he's No. 10," Poirier said.
"Since that loss, he's dropped in the rankings but he's still a dangerous guy. Let's not forget he has wins over Edson Barboza, Tony Ferguson, two of the top guys in the division right now. But that being said, he's also lost to guys we've never heard of. We'll see who shows up on Sept. 17."
"When I watch him fight, I see a guy who moves around a lot. A guy who I think I'm going to finish," Poirier said. "I've been working hard all camp and that's what I expect to do. I feel like I'm better than him in every aspect of the fight. Boxing, if he thinks his boxing is his strong point, this is an uphill battle for him."
A fifth straight win for Poirier coupled with a victory in a main event should put him on the precipice of a very big opponent for his next fight. Poirier has been happy to climb the ranks and fight whoever the UFC puts in front of him, but he hopes with another big finish over Johnson on Saturday night that a top five opponent awaits him as a reward.
"I'm going to go out there put on a great show, beat Michael Johnson and you don't win a main event fight and go back to the undercard. You go into bigger and better fights and that's what I'm on," Poirier said.
"I feel like after this win, one more two more I should be fighting for the belt if not sooner."
