Is the true test of a top pound-for-pound fighter someone who has never been officially solved inside the UFC cage or someone who has rebounded so aggressively to defeat by improving themselves that deserve the most credit?
It's an interesting discussion to be had, especially considering the amount of fighters like Jon Jones, Israel Adesanya and Khabib Nurmagomedov -- and previously Demetrious Johnson -- who have inhabited the top of the pound-for-pound rankings in recent years in part due to the fact that they kept winning. Yet, on the other side of the equation is lightweight Dustin Poirier, whose stunning knockout of Conor McGregor at UFC 257 only further cemented his legend.
No, the 32-year-old Poirier hasn't been what you would call a stranger to the P4P top 10 in recent years, especially after his interim lightweight title victory over Max Holloway in 2018 which propelled him into his lone undisputed title shot. But it was how Poirier responded to that one-sided defeat against Nurmagomedov which was reminiscent of his response to his other major defeat -- a 2014 TKO loss in the first round against McGregor.
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It was the McGregor defeat which sent Poirier north to the lightweight division and forced him to confront his own negative reactions to things like public criticism and the mental warfare played by his foes. The result of that extended evolution saw Poirier author an incredible 9-1 run immediately after the loss, which included stoppage victories over former champions Anthony Pettis, Eddie Alvarez and Justin Gaethje heading into the Holloway fight.
Many fighters who went on to suffer the same kind of dismantling loss at the hands of Nurmagomedov in their most important fight to date simply would not have been able to bounce back in the same manner as Poirier. Not after he entered the Octagon in Abu Dhabi in the best shape of his career and full of confidence that he would be the first to hand "The Eagle" a professional defeat.
Instead, Poirier went back to doing what he knows best: working hard. He also took the path less traveled following such a thorough defeat by coming back nine months later to outlast the dangerous Dan Hooker in a five-round thriller filled with dramatic swings of momentum.
That set the stage for McGregor when, even without Nurmagomedov's title at stake ahead of the champion's expected retirement, Poirier cemented himself as the best active lightweight remaining by leaving McGregor in the fetal position against the cage.
Poirier may not have ever beaten Nurmagomedov, but he has reached the status of all-time great just the same. He also deserves serious consideration among the best P4P fighters today.
For CBS Sports' updated divisional rankings, click here.
Men's pound-for-pound rankings
Dropped out: none
Just missed: Charles Oliveira, Jan Blachowicz, Robert Whittaker, Gilbert Burns, Brian Ortega, Aljamain Sterling
Women's pound-for-pound rankings
Dropped out: none
Just missed: Jessica Andrade, Germaine de Randamie, Holly Holm, Aspen Ladd, Yan Xiaonan
"five" - Google News
January 27, 2021 at 02:33AM
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UFC Pound-for-Pound Fighter Rankings: Dustin Poirier vaults into top five as all-time great run continues - CBS Sports
"five" - Google News
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