UFC 269 results: Charles Oliveira beat Dustin Poirier standing up to retain the title
Charles Oliveira has submitted more opponents than anyone in UFC history, and on Saturday, he added Dustin Poirier to his list. At 1:02 of Round 3 of the UFC 269 main event, Oliveira (32-8 MMA, 20-8 UFC) retained his title by taping Poirier (28-7 MMA, 20-6 UFC) out with a rear-naked choke.
UFC 269 takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday. Following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+, the main card airs on pay-per-view.
The first round was jam-packed with action. Poirier landed a punch on Oliveira in the first seconds of the fight. When Oliveira regained his footing, the pace was just as frenetic. Both men landed powerful strikes one after the other.
Poirier’s preferred weapon was boxing, which proved to be more effective than Oliveira’s mixed-strike strategy. Oliveira, on the other hand, continued to dig into Poirier’s torso with front kicks that seemed to irritate him. Oliveira’s clinch game and knees to the body, as well as his boxing, were successful.
The Oliv-Era 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐄𝐒 👑 #UFC269 pic.twitter.com/WwD5vva6MG
— UFC (@ufc) December 12, 2021
Oliviera attempted to bring Poirier to the ground early in Round 2. Poirier bucked him off and dumped him on the canvas as he snuck to the back. Oliveira then rolled Poirier down using wrist control. Oliveira got inside Poirier’s guard and delivered massive elbows and other ground-and-pound till the round was over.
In the third round, Oliviera grabbed Poirier’s back and leaped on him. He fought for the choke, switching grips until it was secure.
Oliveira successfully defends his lightweight belt for the first time in his career. Oliveira won the 155-pound championship from former champion Khabib Nurmagomedov after his retirement at UFC 262 in May by knocking out Michael Chandler in the second round.
Poirier’s loss ends a three-bout winning streak for “The Diamond,” and it’s the second time he’s lost a fight for the undisputed UFC title. Poirier won an interim lightweight title after defeating Max Holloway at UFC 236 in April 2019. He was unable to unify, however, as he was defeated by then-champion Nurmagomedov by submission at UFC 244 in September of the same year.
Dustin Poirier is defeated by Charles Oliveira through submission (rear-naked choke) in Round 3 (1:02).