UFC: Poirier hits back at Chandler following retirement remark

Dustin Poirier has blasted Michael Chandler after the latter asked the 35-year-old UFC star to “retire” on social media this week.

Poirier fired off tweets to potential opponents like Islam Makhachev and Conor McGregor as the former UFC interim lightweight champion continued to tease his next fight.

He received a response from Chandler, however, who asked him to put his MMA days behind for good.

“No thanks. Retire man… We good,” Chandler wrote.

‘The Diamond’ did not take Chandler’s tweet light-heartedly and issued a strong response.

Poirier escalates online beef

“Who the f**k is ‘we’?” Poirier said of Chandler during his MMA Hour appearance on Wednesday.

“You just go here, buddy. You’re not one of us. You’re not ‘we’. I’ve been here.

“‘We’re good.’ Who’s we? Welcome to the UFC, dude. You’ve got one win in the UFC.

“He’s not one of us. I’ve been cutting my teeth in the UFC since January of 2011.

“He just got here. Who is we? He’s speaking for the lightweight division? Muscle Milk Mike needs to chill.”

There has been bad blood between Poirier and Chandler since their fight in November 2022.

Poirier stepped inside the cage as the -200 favourite because of his UFC experience, while Chandler was the underdog at +170 across MMA bookmakers.

The Louisiana-native lived up to his billing and registered a win via submission, but he was far from happy with his opponent’s fighting strategy.

After his victory, Poirier lashed out at Chandler, branding him a “dirty mother f****r”.

Chandler committed a flurry of fouls throughout the fight and was also accused of fish-hooking his opponent.

It has been almost two years since then, but as the recent verbal exchange between the two of them suggests, the animosity is stronger than ever.

What’s next for Poirier and Chandler?

Poirier himself hinted at retirement after his UFC 302 loss to Islam Makhachev, but his recent activity indicates he has at least one more fight in him.

There is no concrete future assignment for Chandler right now either.

The ex-Bellator star was scheduled to fight Conor McGregor at UFC 303, but the fight was cancelled after the Irishman sustained a toe injury.

Chandler has been absent from the octagon since losing to Poirier in 2022, with no bouts on the horizon.

Sports news