Beneil Dariush reveals gameplan for potential Dustin Poirier clash
Beneil Dariush had strong words for Dustin Poirier as he believes the former interim UFC lightweight champion is avoiding fighters climbing the lightweight rankings.
Dariush appeared on Submission Radio, where he spoke about possibly fighting Poirier in the future. When asked how he believes the fight would play out, he mentioned that 'The Diamond' is typically a slow starter, saying:
"I assume he would start kinda slow and he kinda builds up, you know. And with that being said, I have to take advantage of that. Start fast and never really give him an opportunity to take off cause he starts slow but once he gets in his rythym, he's very good. I would say he's on the verge of being great." [9 - 9:42]
The No.4 ranked lightweight then added that he'd like to fight other lightweights in the top-5, but is frustrated when they don't accept a fight with him. He mentioned that Poirier needs to reassess his career if he doesn't want to compete against others in the top 10, saying:
"I say this as nicely as possible, I'm not trying to be a d**k. But he should really consider retiring because if you're gonna look for the names, if you're gonna look to fight only guys the name will get you there. Bro, there's dogs coming... They're young and they're hungry and looking to kill... Either step up or think about doing something else." [8:07 - 8:49]
Dariush is in the mix for a lightweight title shot as he is currently riding an eight-fight winning streak. He could possibly challenge the winner of the upcoming lightweight title fight between reigning champion Islam Makhachev and featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski.
Check out the full interview with Submission Radio below:
Beneil Dariush fought Mateusz Gamrot with an injury
Beneil Dariush decisively defeats Mateusz Gamrot. https://t.co/2b8LXmQEay
Beneil Dariush revealed that he was dealing with an injury when he fought Mateusz Gamrot at UFC 280.
During his appearance on Submission Radio, the No.4 ranked lightweight mentioned that his MCL was injured during the fight, but it wasn't the first time he has dealt with MCL injuries, saying:
"To be honest, I have MCL injuries quite a bit. Just maybe the way my anatomy is. I've torn my MCLs on both sides before as well...The MCL doesn't really bother me. Stuff like that, you get past. Unless it's a broken leg where I can't walk, it's not gonna get in the way cause if it's just a little bit of pain, you could get past a little bit of pain." [10:54 - 11:35]
The revelation of the MCL injury made the win against Gamrot a lot more impressive, especially considering the manner in which he earned a unanimous decision.