Jump directly to the content

Dustin Poirier will hope it's third time lucky when he challenges lightweight champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 302 next month.

‘The Diamond’ boasts an unwanted title fight record of 0-2 and another defeat could be his final shot at the top of the division.

Poirier has earned himself another title shot
3
Poirier has earned himself another title shotCredit: Getty

One of those championship losses came to Makhachev's former trainer Khabib Nurmagomedov, with this bout representing a similar style.

Poirier bounced back from his BMF title fight defeat to Justin Gaethje by knocking out surging contender Benoit Saint-Denis in March.

Gaethje was the original number-one contender for Makhachev's belt but found himself KO'd by Max Holloway at UFC 300 last month.

Former champion Charles Oliveira also suffered a defeat on the landmark card, leading to Poirier's availability seeing him leap the queue.

Read more in UFC

Russian superstar Makhachev hasn't fought since defending his title in style by dropping Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294.

The UFC will also be debuting their new fight gloves - the 3Eight/5Eight - at the event to reduce eye pokes and hand injuries.

UFC 302: Date and how to follow 

UFC 302 is scheduled for Saturday, June 1, at the Prudential Center, in Newark, New Jersey in the United States.

The preliminary action is set to begin from 11pm UK time before the main card gets going at around 3am UK time.

The headline fight can then be expected at 5am on Sunday morning for UK fans.

Makhachev is top of the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings
3
Makhachev is top of the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankingsCredit: Getty

Fans can watch the preliminary action live on the UFC Fight Pass.

You can sign up to the Fight Pass for £6.99/month or £71.99 for the whole year. More details can be found here.

The main card will be broadcast live on TNT Sports Box Office.

TNT Sports subscribers can also tune in via the discovery+ app to watch the action on their laptops or mobile devices.

More details on how to sign up for TNT Sports and watch the event can be found here

UFC 302: Undercard

Subject to change 

Main card 

  • MAIN EVENT: Islam Makhachev vs. Dustin Poirier - for UFC Lightweight title
  • Sean Strickland vs. Paulo Costa
  • Randy Brown vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos
  • Cesar Almeida vs. Roman Kopylov
  • Tatsuro Taira vs. Joshua Van

Preliminary card 

  • Niko Price vs. Alex Morono
  • Roman Dolidze vs Anthony Hernandez
  • Jailton Almeida vs. Alexander Romanov
  • Mickey Gall vs. Bassil Hafez
  • Philip Rowe vs. Jake Matthews
  • Grant Dawson vs. Joe Solecki
  • Ailín Perez vs. Joselyne Edwards
McGregor hasn't fought since breaking his leg at UFC 264 in July 2021
3
McGregor hasn't fought since breaking his leg at UFC 264 in July 2021Credit: Getty

UFC 302: What has been said?

Conor McGregor told talkSPORT that he is targeting a fourth fight with Poirier as he doesn’t believe he suffered a genuine defeat last time.

"It was good to see Poirier get the win [against Saint-Denis],” McGregor told Adam Catterall.

“That makes this the quadrilogy - the real trilogy - to put a finish to it.

“That is a huge bout right now. I anticipated the result would go that way and I was happy to see it. That’s a big one for sure.”

As for Makhachev, he is looking to make it 'easy' against Poirier.

Read More on talkSPORT

"Dustin, he is a warrior, [a] legend," Makhachev told TMZ.

"He has more than anybody experience in this sport. But his problem is his style. .... His weak point is wrestling and grappling, and I have the key for the easy fight. And if I follow the plan, I can beat him easy. My style and Khabib's style, it's [the] worst style for Dustin."

Topics