by Adam Josephson
Islam Makhachev is confident he has the strategy for a swift victory against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302. Defending his lightweight title, Makhachev faces Poirier in the main event at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. This marks Poirier’s third title attempt; his first ended in a submission loss to Makhachev’s mentor, Khabib Nurmagomedov, at UFC 242. Makhachev believes Poirier hasn’t improved since then and doubts that Poirier or his coach think he can win.
Acknowledging Poirier’s striking skills, Makhachev considers his own style a difficult matchup for Poirier. “Honestly, he’s the same, you know. Maybe [he’s aged,]” Makhachev said during media day. “He doesn’t believe he can beat me, his coach doesn’t believe he can beat me. And I know I can make this fight easy. My style, it’s the worst style for him. He can beat some strikers; he is one of the best strikers in this game. But we’re not strikers, we’re MMA fighters and my skills [are] on a different level.”
Though known for his grappling, Makhachev has developed his striking and feels confident exchanging blows with Poirier. However, he notes he can rely on wrestling to secure an easy win if needed. “Yeah, I can strike with him, but if I want to make this fight easy, I know the way… Always when his opponent pressures him, takes him down; he has the same problem always.”
Makhachev won the title by submitting Charles Oliveira in 2022 and has defended it twice against Alexander Volkanovski. Poirier, coming off a knockout win over Benoit St. Denis, seeks redemption after a previous head-kick knockout loss to Justin Gaethje.
