UFC 318: Holloway vs Poirier 3: A Legendary and Iconic Night

This past Saturday, July 19, Lafayette’s own Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier fought Hawaiian-born reigning BMF Champion Max Holloway in a much-anticipated night. It would be Poirier’s final fight before setting down his gloves and retiring from the sport.

The energy in the Smoothie King Center was unforgettable–there hasn’t been such a passionate crowd as that one for a sport to date. The UFC 318 event was completely sold out with a little over 18,000 in attendance, a historic arena record. In a post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White said that someone told him that “not one person has left the arena” after Poirier’s loss, when he was being interviewed in the octagon. White replied, “That’s pretty special. I mean, you guys know, you’ve done enough fights. Before [Joe] Rogan even gets into the octagon [to interview the fighter], half the place is gone.”

With this fight, the UFC made its return to New Orleans, after nearly 10 years. The last time the UFC hosted a fight here was on June 6, 2015. Coincidentally, on the main card, Poirier fought another Hawaiian native, Yancy Medeiros, who was born in the same town as Holloway fights out of: Wai’anae. Louisiana was also represented at that 2015 fight with New Orleans native, Derrick Lewis. It had been a long time coming for the UFC to make a return, and Dustin Poirier made it happen by having his final fight back in the Big Easy.

Compared to the mere 6,231 in attendance in 2015, the record-breaking attendance of UFC 318 this past weekend was serious validation of the sport. It showed that not only is UFC fighting still breaking records, but more than anything, it was recognition of Poirier’s fan base and the state of Louisiana, showing that the sport is more popular than ever.

In addition, this year’s UFC was a numbered event and was stacked with plenty of local fighters. The card opened up with Carli “Crispy” Judice, a Lafayette-born fighter, starting the night with the first fight of the early prelims. Later, fighting in the prelims was Brendan “All-in” Allen, a fighter who lives in Louisiana, with both of his parents from New Orleans. Finally, Dustin “The Diamond”  Porier, the Lafayette legend, was fighting as the challenger for the BMF (Baddest Mother F—–) title.

While some might say the match-ups were mediocre, especially the early prelims, once the fights began, the opposite became apparent. The early prelims had nothing but finishes, with three submissions and two knockouts. The Lafayette-born fighter, Carli Judice came out victorious with a knockout by a knee to the body in the final round. Surprisingly, the early prelims and the first fight of the prelims were the only fights that had finishes. The majority of the prelims and all of the main cards went to decision.

The next fight between New Orleans’ Brendan Allen vs Marvin Vettori had started before it even began. In August 2024, Allen and Vettori had gotten into a major altercation in a casino hosting PFL 8. There, both exchanged blows, so both men were itching to get into the ring to settle it. At first, Allen threw some significant blows. But Vettori, known for his iron chin, battled back. In the end, however, it wasn’t enough for the Italian fighter, and Allen ultimately had his hand raised for the win. In the post-fight interview, Allen said, “I’m not losing. I live 45 minutes from here, and my brothers’ here. I’m not f—— losing in front of my f——- brother. In my home city, in my home state, you can’t f— with me!”

Into the main card, an under looked co-main event was on the line. Seasoned veteran and Brazilian fighter, Paolo Costa, looked to throw his hat back into the ring after losing his last two fights. In the other corner was an up-and-coming Russian fighter, Roman Kopylov, who was on a streak recently. In the end, the Brazilian underdog came out on top, restoring his name and proving that experience beats youth.

Finally, the lights dimmed for the main event of the evening: the fight for the BMF title and Poirier’s last fight. The crowd was ecstatic when his name was shown on the Jumbotron. Poirier walked out to “Can’t be Broken” by Lil Wayne, a fitting song for “The Diamond.” Just days earlier at Media Day, Poirier mentioned that he walked out to Lil Wayne for his first fight, so he couldn’t change now. Both Poirier and Holloway had dramatically contrasting walkouts to say the least, but the stage was set in what was predicted to be an all-out war. Bruce Buffer pumped up the crowd, announcing Poirier before the fight, belting out: “By way of his home state, LAFAYETTE, LOUISIANAAA!!!” He proceeded to give Poirier his flowers by calling it “the final fight of his legendary and iconic career,” a statement that rang through the Smoothie King Center.

The fight was tense and suspenseful, with two seasoned fighters, who had over a dozen finishes each. In the first round, Holloway knocked down Poirier, clearly taking that round; Holloway showed a strong second round as well. But then Poirier had the crowd on its feet when he put Holloway in his trademark guillotine. The last rounds showed Holloway and Poirier both delivering powerful strikes, and after five dramatic rounds, the hometown hero’s hand was not raised for the win. Holloway took the fight by decision.

Although it was a bittersweet ending for “The Diamond,” he still won the trilogy (2-1 Poirier). However, it was a well-deserved win for Holloway, who was glad for the victory but at the same time respectful of Poirier, grabbing the mic during Poirier’s interview and shouting, “Give it up for the baddest man alive.”

A few days earlier, when asked how he wanted to be remembered, Poirier said, “That any time you saw my name on a fight card, you knew it was gonna be a war, and I was gonna leave it all in there. I just want people to remember me as a warrior.”

Without a doubt, he will be.