Dustin Poirier captured the interim lightweight title by turning away Max Holloway in the UFC 236 main event last month in Atlanta, Georgia, keeping the division moving in the absence of reigning 155-pound kingpin, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Despite finishing “Blessed” when they first went to war at UFC 143 back in 2012, “The Diamond” closed as the betting underdog ahead of UFC 236. No doubt his ability to shut down the venerable Hawaiian — who rules the roost at 145 pounds — left more than a few fans scratching their heads.
Which is probably why questions are still being asked about his pre-fight preparations.
Poirier recently told his Twitter followers that he tipped the scale at 176 pounds before entering the Octagon at UFC 236, 21.5 pounds more than what he registered during the official weigh ins (see them here).
How or why that became a big deal in the combat sports blogosphere is unknown, but even his own Twitter followers were reacting with comments like “wow” and “Jesus” and “Did you go to the buffet after weigh ins?”
I guess they missed that time Thiago Alves packed on nearly 30 pounds in just three hours after stepping on the scale for UFC on FX 2, or when Antonio Silva cut down to 265 pounds for UFC Fight Night 33, then ballooned up to 282 the following day.
Holloway has been on such a tear at 145 pounds that his loss at lightweight likely came as a surprise to most fans, especially when you consider that he’s taller than Poirier, who also competed at featherweight before returning to a healthier size.
Perhaps the reach disadvantage was difficult to overcome, or maybe Holloway struggled to compete with the extra weight, or (gasp) the more-powerful “Diamond” just had his number. Whatever the case was, we certainly need to address extreme weight-cutting issues in MMA.
Poirier weighing 176 pounds for UFC 236 isn’t one of them.