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Dustin Poirier has had a career turnaround like only a few others have in the UFC. From being a Featherweight with multiple losses under his name, he found his home in the 155-pound Lightweight division and has become among the very best in the division.
Former UFC Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier called Dustin Poirier the "second best" Lightweight in the world following his latest victory over Dan Hooker. That was Dustin Poirier's first fight in close to nine months after his loss to the best Lightweight in the world - Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Dustin Poirier spoke to ESPN's Ariel Helwani and was asked about where his career turnaround began. He stated that his loss to a rising Conor McGregor in September 2014 was where it all began:
It definitely started happening after the Conor McGregor loss. That was the start of it. And it's been a long process - being a father, losing again, winning some, losing again and winning some. It's just a long evolution of 'stop caring so much'. You just stop caring about the noise and the stuff that doesn't matter.
When asked what it was about the Conor McGregor loss that turned it all around, he stated that he managed to develop an attitude where he didn't care as much:
Because a lot of times in my younger career I thought it was life or death. Every comment on Instagram or Twitter, every journalist who said something. I felt like everybody was against me and if I lost I was written off, if I lose this fight it's the end of my career. You lose a few times and realize 'I can still put it back together, I'm still providing for my family, I'm still loving what I do.' You've been bent but not broken'
Dustin Poirier's place in the Lightweight division
With Khabib Nurmagomedov as Champion, Dustin Poirier is unlikely to get a title shot in the coming year. However, Nurmagomedov faces Justin Gaethje later in the summer and if he manages to pull off the upset against the Russian, then Dustin Poirier has a claim for an immediate title shot.
A few days before the interview mentioned in this article, Ariel Helwani suggested that Tony Ferguson would be the perfect opponent for Dustin Poirier. There's no doubt that it would be an exciting fight and it would also serve as the perfect #1 contender bout.
Either way, Dustin Poirier proved that he's still among the very best in the sport following his five-round war with Dan Hooker and it's going to be interesting to see how it ends up playing out for him.
