Dustin Poirier says defeating Eddie Alvarez at UFC 211 puts him’ one win away’ from title shot

Dustin Poirier finds himself in a good position to climb the lightweight ladder when he takes on former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightweight king Eddie Alvarez at UFC 211 on May 13 in Dallas, Texas. It will easily be Poirier’s biggest Octagon test to date, and one that “Diamond” feels could propel him to greater heights at 155 pounds.

“A win over Eddie Alvarez would put me right there fighting for the title,” said Poirier in a recent interview with MMAjunkie Radio.

Poirier, 28, shook off a devastating knockout loss to Michael Johnson at UFC Fight Night 94 by handling veteran Jim Miller via majority decision at UFC 208 in February. If Poirier is able to further pad his lightweight record, his case for a title shot will become more plausible.

“That would put me at 6-1 in the lightweight division with a win over the former champ,” explained Poirier. “It’s not like I’m a guy who just stumbled into the top 10. … I’ve been in title eliminator fights before at featherweight. I’m not a new guy to the block, and I’ve been putting in work.

“This guy was just a champion. If I go out there and put a stamp on Eddie Alvarez, I think I’m one win away.”

Remember, Alvarez lost his title to Conor McGregor at UFC 205 this past November. Before that, “The Underground King” starched Rafael dos Anjos via first-round knockout to claim the title nearly nine months ago.

“He might not have the same motivation he had on his climb to that belt,” said Poirier. “But I know this: This is the biggest fight of my life, and Eddie’s probably thinking it’s not the biggest fight of his life. … I don’t know what’s going on with Eddie, but I hope he’s busting his ass.”

UFC 211 will be headlined by a heavyweight title fight between current champion Stipe Miocic and former champion Junior dos Santos, as well as a women’s strawweight title fight between current champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Brazilian bruiser Jessica Andrade.

For more UFC 211 fight card news click here.