Is BMF title more significant than UFC undisputed belt? Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje weigh in

Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje recently revealed whether the BMF title was more important than an undisputed UFC championship belt. The two lightweights are set to clash at UFC 291 for the unique title this weekend.

The “BMF” title is back! Get a close look at the belt ahead of the #UFC291 press conference.

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The BMF title holds a special place in the MMA world, originating from a one-off fight between Nate Diaz and Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244. Diaz declared himself the "baddest motherf**ker in the game" after defeating Anthony Pettis at UFC 241 and called out Masvidal for a showdown. Masvidal went on to secure a third-round TKO victory over Diaz, becoming the inaugural BMF champion.

At the recent UFC 291 pre-fight presser, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje were asked if they considered the BMF title more significant than the undisputed championship. Poirier replied:

"Nah, I don't think so. It's a great part of history. It's great for my legacy... But the undisputed title is the ultimate prize, and the interim belt was a piece of that... That's the ultimate goal."

Gaethje concurred and said:

"Same thing. This is awesome, but other than legacy, it doesn't do nothing near as much as a world championship belt. I think this catapults either one of us [whoever wins] into that fight."

Catch their comments below (20:20):

Jon Anik on why the BMF title is "elevated" by Dustin Poirier vs. Justin Gaethje rematch

Jon Anik recently weighed in on the highly-anticipated BMF title fight between Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje at UFC 291. The perennial UFC commentator opined that this unique title fight is more important than the previous Nate Diaz vs. Jorge Masvidal fight and explained why he believed so.

This weekend, Poirier and Gaethje will face each other for the second time. Five years removed from their last meeting at UFC on Fox 29, the two mercurial lightweights have established themselves as top contenders in the division.

Running it back for the BMF title 🤬🏆

Two more sleeps to #UFC291!

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In a recent interview with MiddleEasy, Jon Anik explained that while Diaz and Masvidal fit the "BMF" tag, the title shot implications in the Poirier and Gaethje BMF title matchup elevated its importance. He said:

"Now, it’s not an undisputed belt, but who are the guys most worthy of it? And at least as far as championship stakes, these two are closer to the belt than perhaps where Jorge Masvidal and Nate Diaz were when they fought at UFC 244... I got to say Poirier and Gaethje are fighting for the true title eliminator and, as such, I think you would have to say it’s just elevated the discussion.”

Watch the full interview below: