Former UFC interim lightweight champion Poirier returns to his home state for one final sendoff against his longtime rival, former UFC featherweight king and current BMF titleholder Holloway, while Paulo Costa faces off against Roman Kopylov in a three-round middleweight co-headliner.
Poirier (30-9, 1 NC) is one of the most celebrated fighters of his era. Despite never capturing an undisputed UFC title, “The Diamond” has strung together a Hall of Fame résumé over the course of his 14-year Octagon career, defeating a legendary list of top fighters across two divisions. Poirier’s list of conquests include Conor McGregor (x2), Eddie Alvarez, Justin Gaethje, Anthony Pettis and Dan Hooker, among many others. Poirier’s homecoming at UFC 318 is expected to serve as his retirement bout.
Holloway (26-8) is a fitting rival for Poirier’s swan song. “Blessed” rides into UFC 318 sporting a similarly long list of accolades, having carved out a place for himself as one of the greatest featherweights of all time across his 13-year UFC tenure. Holloway captured the UFC’s ceremonial BMF belt with 2024’s Knockout of the Year — an instantly iconic point-down, throwdown against Gaethje in the literal final second of their summer bout. Following a loss to Ilia Topuria this past October, Holloway committed to a full-fledged run in the lightweight division, which begins on Saturday at UFC 318.
Poirier, 36, and Holloway, 33, have collided twice before, first in 2012 and then again in 2019, with Poirier winning both contests.
The UFC 318 start time for the preliminary card is at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2, ESPN+ and Disney+. The main card begins live at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
Follow along with Uncrowned’s live UFC 318: Poirier vs. Holloway 3 results, highlights and live blog below, including round-by-round play-by-play for the final seven bouts of the night.
Main Card (ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET)
BMF championship: Max Holloway vs. Dustin Poirier
Middleweight: Paulo Costa vs. Roman Kopylov
Welterweight: Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez
Featherweight: Dan Ige vs. Patricio Pitbull
Lightweight: Michael Johnson vs. Daniel Zellhuber.
