UFC champ Islam Makhachev opens up on mistakes in Dustin Poirier win

UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev acknowledges he wasn’t flawless against Dustin Poirier.

Makhachev (26-1 MMA, 15-1 UFC) notched his third title defense when he submitted Poirier in Round 5 at UFC 302 in June. Makhachev, who’s dominated most of his opposition throughout his career, was surprised with how competitive “The Diamond” made things.

Poirier won two rounds on one of the judges’ scorecards. Despite the back-and-forth affair, Makhachev enjoyed the fight.

“Last time I fought Poirier, he prepared for this fight very well,” Makhachev told Demetrious Johnson on his YouTube channel. “He did good homework, and he defended my wrestling. I did like, a lot of mistakes. I also had the kimura, and when I closed, I thought it was finished.

“I did mistakes a couple of times, you know, and he gave me a (gash). But when I watch the highlights, I like this fight. If you ask me which fight I want to watch again, I’m going to say with Poirier because I watched this fight many times, and I was enjoying it. I know what I did wrong, what I did right, what I have to change.”

With his win over Poirier, Makhachev tied the 155-pound record for most consecutive title defenses at three. His next assignment is a rematch Arman Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) Jan. 18 in the UFC 311 main event from Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif., and airs on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 311.