Islam Makhachev defended his lightweight title with a fifth-round submission victory over Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 at the Prudential Center in Newark, extending his winning streak to 14 bouts, the third-longest in UFC history.
Makhachev overcame one of boxing’s veteran fighters and a crowd that included his early nemesis, former President Donald Trump, to improve to 26-1 and said after the fight he might try again at a higher weight class.
“This is my dream,” Makhachev said.
There certainly isn’t much left for the Russian 155-pound fighter, who defended his title for the third time and proved once again why he is rated the best pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.
Poirier (30-9), undefeated in three attempts to capture the title, has come up short by submission each time, and the 35-year-old is considering retirement.
“We’ll have to see. I think this might be my last time,” he said after the game.
Poirier fought back after Makhachev dominated the first round and then drew blood from the champion’s face, but was unable to escape as Makhachev took him down midway through the fifth round and pounced on him straight away.
While he respected his challenger’s achievements, Makhachev pointed out this week that while Poirier had a good record against boxers, he had weaknesses against fighters with wrestling experience, something Makhachev cited as a strength.
The champion looked to be on his way to his 12th victory by submission in the first round, as he took Poirier down in the first minute and kept him pinned to the mat for the remainder of the round.
Fans cheered wildly when Poirier, the fourth-ranked lightweight, escaped several takedown attempts in the second round and cheered even louder when the horn sounded to end the round.
The two fighters traded blows in the third and fourth rounds, leaving both men covered in blood, but Makhachev needn’t have feared any further punches.
In the co-main event, former middleweight champion Sean Strickland won by split decision over Paulo Costa.
Strickland appeared to be in control of the bout against the Brazilian, who spent most of the match retreating from attack and defense.
Strickland (29-6), who lost the title in his last bout, a split decision loss to Dorricus du Plessis in January, said after the fight he would like to give it another shot.
“I want to fight for the belt,” he said.
Strickland spent most of the first round using short kicks to keep his distance and barely landed a punch with UFC’s newly designed gloves designed primarily to prevent eye pokes, which he criticized until he knocked down Costa (14-4) with a right hand in the final minute of the round.
He went for the finish in the final minutes of the fifth round, taking Costa down with a kick and chasing him down before time expired.
