Dustin Poirier believes he is a much different person and fighter since he lost to Conor McGregor by first-round TKO at UFC 178.
The loss would be “The Diamond’s” final featherweight scrap and since then has become a perennial lightweight contender. He fought for the lightweight title last September but lost via submission against Khabib Nurmagomedov. Poirier has also done a ton in his community where he won the Forrest Griffin Community Award.
For The Diamond, he says the loss to McGregor was crucial for his evolution as a man and a fighter.
“It definitely started happening after the Conor McGregor loss,” Poirier told ESPN (via MMAFighting) about his evolution as a fighter and emergence as an honest, brass tacks personality. “That was the start of it. It’s been a long process, being a father, losing again, winning some and losing again, and winning another one. It’s just a long evolution of stop caring so much. You just stop caring about the noise and stuff that doesn’t matter. . .
“A lot of times in my younger career, I felt like it was life or death. Every comment on Instagram and Twitter, every journalist who said something, I felt like everybody was against me. I felt like if I lost I would be written off, it’s the end of my career. I’m a bum if I lose this fight. And then you lose a few times and you’re like, ‘Oh sh*t, I can still put this back together. Oh man, I’m still providing for my family. I’m still loving what I do.’ It’s like you’ve been bent but not broken a lot of times. I feel like it made me stronger and it made me the man I am today, I’m happy. I’m genuinely happy.”
Dustin Poirier returned to the win column last Saturday at UFC on ESPN 12 where he beat Dan Hooker by unanimous decision in an all-time great fight.
