Khabib is back! ‘Eagle’ to corner Islam Makhachev against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302

Dustin Poirier has had some of the toughest title fight opponents a fighter could imagine.

That won’t change for “The Diamond” at UFC 302 this weekend (Sat., June 1, 2024). Poirier, 35, gets his third crack at the undisputed UFC Lightweight title when he challenges the champion, Islam Makhachev.

Although Poirier (30-8, 1 no contest) has never won the big one, he did hold the interim title after he defeated Max Holloway via unanimous decision in their April 2019 rematch. The victory led Poirier to his first undisputed title tilt against the then-champion, the undefeated dominator, Khabib Nurmagomedov. Poirier came up short via a third round rear-naked choke in the bout and will once again have to deal with Nurmagomedov as Makhachev has confirmed “The Eagle” will return to Makhachev’s corner at UFC 302.

Nurmagomedov, 35, retired from mixed martial arts (MMA) one fight later when he defeated Justin Gaethje after Poirier in October 2020. The all-time great went on to focus on coaching and was seen in the corner of his teammate and protege, Makhachev’s, for several fights after. However, the legend wound up taking a brief break from cornering and coaching but recently got more involved again and will be cage side for the first time since Makhachev won the title against Charles Oliveira (watch highlights) in October 2022.

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 302 fight card right here, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:15 p.m. ET (simulcast on ESPN2 at 8 p.m. ET), before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

To check out the latest and greatest UFC 302: “Makhachev vs. Poirier” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.