Daniel Cormier likes the idea of Dustin Poirier vs. Arman Tsarukyan as a UFC lightweight title eliminator.
Tsarukyan (21-3 MMA, 8-2 UFC) emerged as a top contender when he quickly knocked out Beneil Dariush in the UFC on ESPN 52 headliner. Tsarukyan called for a title shot against champion Islam Makhachev, who’s currently linked to rematch Charles Oliveira for his next title defense.
Poirier (29-8 MMA, 21-7 UFC) is coming off a knockout loss to Justin Gaethje, who’s opting to wait for a title shot when he gets his turn. In the meantime, Cormier thinks Tsarukyan and Poirier should fight.
“What I think should happen, I don’t know if it will happen, is if Islam fights sometime in the first quarter of the year, you put Tsarukyan on UFC 300 against Dustin Poirier,” Cormier said on his ESPN show “DC & RC.” “Because Dustin said he wants to fight at that point. You know that UFC 300 is somewhere around April, you put him on UFC 300, and then maybe, maybe he comes back at the end of the year for that third fight that Makhachev said he wants. Now, you’ve got a guy that just beat one of the biggest names if he can get past Poirier.
“If he doesn’t, Dustin Poirier has now laid claim to the title shot after Justin Gaethje. So, it really does bring some stability to this weight class. As often as we see guys today say stuff like, ‘I’ll wait. I’ll wait a year if I have to. I don’t care.’ Arman Tsarukyan said, ‘If it’s not the next fight, I’ll fight somebody else, and if it’s not after that, OK, I’ll fight somebody else again.’ He doesn’t care. He will fight over and over and over until he’s undeniable, and he has to get the championship opportunity.”
Poirier has been adamant that he wants fights that excite him. He never addressed a potential fight with Tsarukyan, but Cormier is confident “The Diamond” will accept if offered.
“Dustin Poirier is from Lafayette, Dustin Poirier ain’t scared of nothing, and Dustin Poirier is just a flat-out dog,” Cormier said. “So, if they give him that fight, he’ll take it. He’s a dog. Dustin Poirier is an absolute dog, so he’ll take the fight, and I think that will be a tremendous addition to UFC 300.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 300.
