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Dustin Poirier reveals the one mistake he cannot make against Islam Makhachev in their title fight at UFC 302

Dustin Poirier has to push the pace if he hopes to leave The Garden State with UFC gold wrapped…

Dustin Poirier has to push the pace if he hopes to leave The Garden State with UFC gold wrapped around his waist.

After coming up short in two previous title bids against Khabib Nurmagomedov and Charles Oliveira, Poirier will step into the main event spotlight for one final shot at the 155-pound crown when he meets the former’s protege, Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 on June 1.

Though ‘The Diamond’ has already faced a who’s who of Hall of Fame talent inside the Octagon, his fight against the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ may be his toughest yet. Speaking with TMZ days away from fight night, Poirier revealed the one mistake he has to avoid against a fighter like Makhachev.

“People who try to slow the fight down and make it a grappling chess match,” Poirier said. “Those have been the hardest fights for me to get going because I do best when it stays a fight. When it doesn’t slow down when it’s a scramble with punches flying and both of us bleeding, that’s where I do the best work, and I’m not trying to hold him down and win rounds.

“I’m trying to knock him out and hurt him and finish him and get out of there. That’s the way I fight” (h/t Bloody Elbow).

Dustin Poirier details his keys to victory at uFC 302

As Poirier broke down the one thing he knows he can’t do, he offered up a laundry list of equally important things he must do if he wants to “finish his story” inside the Prudential Center.

“Be in the moment, be reactive to all of his shots,” Poirier continued. “Don’t get overzealous throwing power shots where I take myself out of position and become an easy target for a trip or a takedown. Don’t play the clinch. There’s a list of things. Don’t play in the clinch with him. He has really good foot sweeps, really strong upper body. Keep it a fight. Use my wheels. Stay moving. Keep him guessing and then tighten him up.”

With a plethora of noteworthy opponents, an interim title to his credit, and a career guaranteed to make him a first-ballot Hall of Famer, Dustin Poirier has little left to prove, but that doesn’t mean he’s content walking away without checking off one last box on his to-do list in mixed martial arts.

Joe Rogan set to return to commentary call at UFC 302 for lightweight title fight in New Jersey homecoming

Newark’s own, Joe Rogan will make his return to the commentary booth this weekend following his recent absence amid…

Newark’s own, Joe Rogan will make his return to the commentary booth this weekend following his recent absence amid the Octagon’s travel to South America, calling the action as part of a three-man team in New Jersey for UFC 302: Makhachev vs. Poirier.

Rogan, a long-time color commentator stalwart under the banner of the promotion, has been sidelined from duties since he called the monumental UFC 300 event back in April in Las Vegas, watching on as light heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira rounded out the card with a blistering knockout win over Jamahal Hil.

Joe Rogan set to miss UFC 301 card in Brazil as Paul Felder makes trip for South America fight card — Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas – USA TODAY Sports

Joe Rogan calls the action from UFC 302 this weekend

And this weekend, the veteran broadcaster returns home to his native Newark, forming a three-man booth alongside fellow color commentator, Daniel Cormier, and staple play-by-play lead, Jon Anik. News of Joe Rogan’s inclusion on the pay-per-view return to the East Coast was first reported by MMA Fighting.

Set to call the action in a championship setting once more – Rogan and co will watch on as undisputed lightweight champion and current pound-for-pound pacesetter, Islam Makhachev attempts to rack up his third successful defense of the title in a showdown against former interim gold holder, Dustin Poirier.

Joe Rogan UFC 300 Zuffa LLC — Mandatory Credit: Carmen Mandato

In the night’s co-main event at the Prudential Center, former undisputed middleweight champion, Sean Strickland returns as he takes on former middleweight title challenger, Paulo Costa – with the pair vying for a potential title-eliminator in their immediate future.

Rogan, who typically centers his commentary duties to North American events – particularly flagship cards, was drafted out of UFC 301 last month in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – with former lightweight contender, Paul Felder replacing the veteran caller on the microphone.

2019602226 islam makhachev credit getty 1

UFC 302 takes place this weekend from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey – with Islam Makhachev’s title clash with Dustin Poirier slated to take main event honors in ‘The Garden State’.

Are you happy to see Joe Rogan return to the booth for UFC 302?

Video – Khamzat Chimaev looking sharp in training montage ahead of Robert Whittaker fight on June 22

Undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev is looking sharp ahead of his return to the Octagon. On Saturday, June 22,…

Undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev is looking sharp ahead of his return to the Octagon.

On Saturday, June 22, the UFC will head to Kingdom Arena in Riyadh for its promotional debut in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Headlining the historic evening will be Chimaev as he looks to secure himself a middleweight title opportunity. To do so, he’ll have to go through Aussie fan favorite and former UFC champion Robert Whittaker.

With less than a month until fight night, ‘Borz’ offered fans a glimpse at his training via Instagram.

“Healthy body, healthy mind!” Chimaev wrote in the translated post.

The stakes are high for Khamzat Chimaev and Robert Whittaker

After a massive failure on the scale in September 2022, Chimaev made the move to middleweight where he earned a victory over short-notice replacement opponent Kamaru Usman at UFC 294 late last year. His fight with ‘The Reaper’ will be his first legitimate fight as a 185-pounder since a scrap with Gerald Meerschaert nearly four years ago.

As for Whittaker, the ex-titleholder will be seeking his second-straight victory inside the Octagon after earning a well-fought unanimous decision W over Paulo Costa in February.

Though the fight has not been labeled as an official title eliminator, the victor will likely move on to challenge the winner of the yet-to-be-announced title tilt between Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya.

P4P legend Demetrious Johnson believes boxing has been far more exciting than MMA this year

P4P great Demetrious Johnson believes boxing is much more exciting than what’s going on in the world of mixed…

P4P great Demetrious Johnson believes boxing is much more exciting than what’s going on in the world of mixed martial arts these days.

Over the last several months, fans of the sweet science have been treated to a plethora of noteworthy clashes, starting with Francis Ngannou’s sophomore appearance inside the squared circle, followed by a stunning scrap between Ryan Garcia and Devin Haney.

And, of course, you can’t talk about boxing without mentioning the 12-round war between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.

Meanwhile, in MMA we’ve got Conor McGregor out partying six weeks ahead of his long-awaited return, Jon Jones refusing to fight Tom Aspinall, and Ronda Rousey still crying about a decade-old loss.

Speaking with The MMA Hour host Ariel Helwani on his MightyCast podcast, ‘Mighty Mouse’ suggested that there is much more to be intrigued with in boxing than anything the UFC or PFL is putting out.

“Right now I feel like boxing is more exciting than mixed martial arts,” Johnson said. “There are points in time when mixed martial arts is having its peak, but right now you just have Ryan Garcia vs. Devin Haney. Then you got Francis Ngannou who just got knocked out by Anthony Joshua and we had Tyson Fury vs. [Oleksandr] Usyk where Usyk just beat him and became the [undisputed] heavyweight champion. That fight was absolutely amazing from round one to round 12. I was on the edge of my seat.”

“Right now, we’re sitting here waiting for… in ONE Championship we got a couple of things like Kade Ruotolo making his debut in MMA, but I think the story we’re waiting for in MMA is Islam [Makhachev] taking on Dustin Poirier.”

Though Demetrious Johnson isn’t wrong, there’s still plenty in MMA to be excited about

Demetrious Johnson certainly has a point, but that’s not to say the UFC hasn’t put out anything to be excited by over the last several months. We’re a mere six weeks removed from the promotion’s landmark event in Las Vegas that delivered us Max Holloway’s insane buzzer-beating KO against Justin Gaethje and Alex Pereira’s viral finish of Jamahal Hill.

In June we’ve got the UFC’s debut in Saudi Arabia featuring the return of undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev and Conor McGregor’s welterweight showdown with Michael Chandler at UFC 303 which, according to Dana White, has already smashed the record for highest gate in promotional history.

Topps Hits Bottom With Goofy ‘Pack Fight’

UFC

Two men enter … two men leave. Dana White recently accepted a “pack fight” against Michael Rubin.
The UFC CEO will face off against the Fanatics CEO on Fri., May 31 at 1 p.m. ET — but don’t expect the fists to star…

Two men enter … two men leave.

Dana White recently accepted a “pack fight” against Michael Rubin.

The UFC CEO will face off against the Fanatics CEO on Fri., May 31 at 1 p.m. ET — but don’t expect the fists to start flying. Instead, the two combatants will be ripping open packs of “Midnight UFC” trading cards from Topps, with the best fighters declaring the winner.

This is one of those high-concept marketing strategies that is supposed to energize fans and monetize exposure. Your job is to GET HYPED and buy a bunch of Midnight UFC cards, then sit around the coffee table ripping open Topps packs with your best bros.

Apologies to all the suckers who purchased UFC NFT cards because digital is becoming obsolete. Just don’t stick these beauties in the spokes of your BMX wheels because each box retails for $319.99. At that price point you could buy 10 Hasbulla t-shirts!

“Bring that s—t, Michael Rubin,” White wrote on Instagram.

Hopefully he wasn’t referring to the Midnight UFC cards.

Documents reveal how the UFC’s $335 million antitrust lawsuit settlement will be distributed to fighters

On Tuesday, May 21, parties in the UFC antitrust lawsuits filed a Motion for Preliminary Approval of the Settlement….

On Tuesday, May 21, parties in the UFC antitrust lawsuits filed a Motion for Preliminary Approval of the Settlement. The documents revealed the amount of money the plaintiffs’ attorneys and the fighters in the suit are likely to receive after the promotion settled with a total payout of $335 million.

According to a report from MMA Payout, attorneys representing the fighters are requesting no more than 1/3 of the UFC Settlement Fund plus interest, equating to roughly $10.05 million, and reimbursement of litigation expenses “of no more than $11 million” for an amount totaling just a hair over $21 million.

The remaining $314 million will be distributed between 1,950 fighters across the two classes — the [Cung] Le Class and the [Kajon] Johnson Class. However, it should be noted that some fighters in the suit are represented in both classes. The Le Class, which consists of 1,290 members will receive 75% of the Settlement Fund while the remaining 25% will go to the Johnson Class, comprised of another 1,140 members.

The plan of allocation would provide Le Class members an award from the Settlement equaling 25% [or more] of their total earnings from bouts from the Le Class period. The Le Class will be divided based on the number of fights in the UFC and their compensation at the time. The minimum amount of recovery is $8,000.

Certain Fighters under the Johnson Clash to receive 10% of their lifetime UFC earnings in settlement

Per the report, “Certain claimants from the Johnson Settlement Class will receive as much as 10% of their lifetime bout earnings.”

Payouts will also depend on whether or not the fighter had an arbitration agreement in its contract for the Johnson Class as the UFC changed its contract to include an arbitration provision during the Johnson time period. Those with arbitration provisions will receive $5,000.

Though he was not party to the lawsuit, former UFC fighter Nate Quarry will receive a $250,000 settlement for his claims which were outside the timeframe set by the parties in the lawsuit and was therefore left out.

Settlements will be sent out in separate payouts starting November 1, 2024, and again on April 1, 2025.

Information and screenshots courtesy of Jason Cruz