Dustin Poirier Still Believes He Can Beat Khabib Nurmagomedov
Dustin Poirier was unsuccessful in his bid against Khabib Nurmagomedov in Abu Dhabi, but “The Diamond” is still confident he has what it takes to hand the Russian his first loss.
Poirier and Nurmagomedov headlined UFC 242 in Abu Dhabi earlier this month. The American Top Team (ATT) product put on a solid effort, putting Nurmagomedov in trouble a few times. However, the Russian grappler was able to lock in a rear-naked choke in the third round that forced Poirier to tap out.
Speaking on “The Ariel Helwani MMA Show” recently, Poirier admitted Nurmagomeodv is a special individual, but still believes he has what it takes to beat him. (H/T MMA Mania)
“He is a special individual, but I can beat him,” Poirier said. “I just let myself down that night and it sucks.”
Poirier continued, saying he’s determined to work his way back up to a lightweight title opportunity and knows he’s still one of the best lightweights in the world.
“I promise you I am going to rise again and I am going to get my hand raised, beat who I have to beat and I will be back,” Poirier said. “I’ll be knocking on that door again, I just hate to have to dust myself off over and over again, but this is my story.”
“This is my path. I don’t try to look for an explanation as to why this happened. I know I am one of the best in the world, and when it all does finally come together, It is going to be beautiful and it’s my story. It’s a love and hate relationship. Sometimes I love this so much and sometimes I hate it. It’s something that keeps breaking your heart but you keep going back to it. I can’t stop and I will not stop. I know have greatness in me, and I just have to show the world, keep rising.”
What do you think about Poirier saying he still thinks he can beat Khabib?