Max Holloway, Dustin Poirier's Next Best Fights After UFC 318 Results

UFC 318 was supposed to be a retirement party for Dustin Poirier, but Max Holloway wasn't much for that sentiment. Blessed finally picked up a win against The Diamond with a unanimous decision win in the main event.

It's a huge win for Holloway. The former featherweight champion was coming off a loss to Ilia Topuria and Poirier's name still carries a lot of weight in the lightweight division.

He might not be next in line for the title, but this is a win that keeps him in the mix atop the division.

For Poirier, this is supposed to be it.

The Louisiana native was adamant that this was his retirement fight. Maybe it is, but it's awfully tough to go out on a loss. We just witnessed a 46-year-old Manny Pacquiao fight for a world title and retirement often means "brief hiatus".

Here's what could be on the horizon for both of the main event combatants after UFC 318.

Holloway's Next Best Opponents

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Paddy Pimblett

• Paddy Pimblett
• Justin Gaethje
• Ilia Topuria

Max Holloway suffered his first knockout loss to Ilia Topuria, but the win over The Diamond should give him new life in his quest for the lightweight title.

An immediate rematch with Topuria would be nice in some regard. He could jump right back into the title mix and get a shot at avenging the loss. But if his main goal is to become the lightweight champion then it might be better to target a fellow contender.

There's already talk that Topuria could be making the move up to welterweight. He's on a wild run that saw him capture the featherweight and lightweight crowns in just three fights.

A meeting with Islam Makhachev could skyrocket him on All-Time lists.

For Holloway, that's incentive enough to wait a bit before trying to get the lightweight crown. A more sensible matchup against the likes of Paddy Pimblett makes more sense.

Pimblett's stock is on the rise after he beat Michael Chandler. Holloway has been vocal about his admiration for Pimblett's game. A matchup between the two would not only yield a fun fight, but also give us a clearer picture of whether Pimblett can contend for the title.

No one would be upset with a Justin Gaethje rematch either. The two fighters met at UFC 300 with the BMF belt on the line and Holloway won a classic with a buzzer-beating knockout.

Now that Holloway has defended the BMF belt against Poirier, a rematch with Gaethje for that belt and a crack at the lightweight title would make a lot of fans happy.

Poirier's Next Best Opponents

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• Retirement
• Conor McGregor
• Ilia Topuria

Let's start with this. Dustin Poirier should absolutely stick to his decision to retire if that's what he wants to do. There are far too many fighters across combat sports who should hang it up earlier than they do.

Poirier has been a fan-friendly fighter and company man throughout his career. He deserves to coach, golf, tinker with hot sauce recipes and whatever retirement activities he'd like to get into.

But there are two scenarios where no one could blame him for accepting the UFC's call.

The first would be a third fight with Conor McGregor. For one, Poirier has had McGregor's number. He lost their first fight in 2014, but scored back-to-back victories over the Notorious one in 2021.

McGregor hasn't fought since then and it's looking less and less likely he'll come back. He's now 37, but he recently told the media that he's in the testing pool to make a return to fighting.

There's a lot of bad blood there. If Poirier wants one final payday and a winnable fight, then ruining McGregor's return could be on the table.

The only other scenario that should be interesting is if he were given one last shot at a UFC title. Poirier has five wins over former UFC champions, but never held the belt himself.

Right now, that would mean a matchup against Ilia Topuria. That's less than ideal, but McGregor or the belt would be the only reason to pick up the phone.