Dustin Poirier bids farewell to MMA after epic UFC 318 war with Max Holloway

Max Holloway Spoils Dustin Poirier's Retirement Party

Poirier first bested Holloway in 2012 when the two men were still featherweights before he also gave "Blessed" a rude welcome to lightweight at UFC 236, where Poirier claimed the interim UFC lightweight belt via unanimous decision.

UFC 318 kicked off with a run of six-straight finishes before the next seven fights went the distance, and all four main card fights leading up to the main event shockingly saw the pre-fight underdog get their hand raised.

Holloway took a kick-heavy approach to open the trilogy bout before he suddenly dropped Poirier after less than two minutes of action, but "The Diamond" recovered and settled in during the second half of the round.

Poirier looked to be in control during the first few minutes of the second frame before getting rocked. The 36-year-old ended up on his back for an extended period, but during the final minute he dropped Holloway and jumped for a guillotine in the waning seconds.

Both men managed to remain on their feet during a closely-contested third frame, and the championship rounds opened with another strong few minutes from Poirier before Holloway appeared to steal back some momentum heading into the final round.

The final five minutes of Poirier's fighting career fittingly saw the two men exchange some massive shots and throw down in the center of the cage once the 10-second clapper sounded, and it was Holloway who ultimately got his hand raised via unanimous decision after an epic war.

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