SALT LAKE CITY – What started as a great quote and moment on the mic has turned into a real thing in the UFC: the “BMF” title.
When Nate Diaz challenged Jorge Masvidal to a fight in 2019, saying the winner would be the “baddest motherf*cker,” he couldn’t have known there’d be an actual UFC “BMF” title. Masvidal won it, but Saturday it will get a resurrection nearly four years later.
Former interim lightweight champions Dustin Poirier (29-7 MMA, 21-6 UFC) and Justin Gaethje (24-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) meet in the UFC 291 main event at Delta Center in Salt Lake City. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ABC/ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+. The “BMF” belt will go to the winner.
Poirier has 13 career UFC post-fight bonuses. Gaethje has a remarkable 11 in 11 UFC fights. Both are known for their durability and fan-friendly slugfests, so if ever there was a time to trot the “BMF” thing back out, it’s for their rematch. Poirier beat Gaethje with a fourth-round TKO in a FOX headliner in 2018.
Ahead of the UFC 291 main event, we asked fighters in Utah what they think of the “BMF” belt – and who they’re picking in the fight. Check out the video above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 291.
