Daniel Cormier explains why he "hates" idea of Dustin Poirier talking about retirement while still in active competition
Daniel Cormier does not believe that Dustin Poirier addressing his potential retirement will be beneficial to his game. Instead, the former two-division champion presumes that the act may be a sign of an upcoming letdown performance.
Posting his thoughts on his YouTube channel, Cormier stated that from personal experience, he feels that fighters who accept inner thoughts on retirement all but confirm the end of their careers. 'DC' claimed that active fighters who entertain the end are not fully focused on the current task at hand.
Cormier said:
"I hate that [Dustin Poirier mentioned retirement]... It could be almost over and he recognizes that. I did it myself... The life after the fight, when you look at it from the inside and you're going through those training camps and everything's so tough, the other side seems very nice... If you have any desire to fight, you gotta be so in the fight that there is no thought of what comes next."
Poirier, 35, mentioned in previous interviews that he believes he will compete for the final time in his career at UFC 302 regardless of the result. The former interim champion claimed winning undisputed gold is the final stone left unturned in his tenure and he has no desire to fight his way back to another title fight should he lose.
As two fighters from Louisiana, Cormier and Poirier share a bond and are often seen enjoying each other's company. Cormier's word of advice to his associate stems from his similar situation at UFC 252 when he announced he would retire before fighting Stipe Miocic.
Since retiring from fighting in 2020, the 45-year-old has transitioned to working with ESPN as an MMA analyst full-time. He has become a staple of the UFC pay-per-view broadcasts alongside Jon Anik and Joe Rogan.
Watch the full video from Daniel Cormier on YouTube below:
UFC 252: Daniel Cormier's retirement fight
In his breakdown of Dustin Poirier's recent comments, Daniel Cormier noted that he believes 'The Diamond' is making the "same mistake" that he did in the final fight of his career.
In his retirement fight at UFC 252, Cormier openly marketed the championship fight trilogy with Stipe Miocic as the last of his career. The fight, while competitive in moments, was largely controlled by Miocic, who won a unanimous decision to defend his title.
The former champion has stated that looking back in hindsight, he regrets not retiring a few years before he officially stepped away and should not have continued to fight once he was certain he would retire.
Per Cormier's claim, several other fighters have since lost in their final appearances that were outwardly promoted as retirement bouts.