NEW ORLEANS – Dyah Davis did his best to urge Dustin Poirier into more exchanges with Max Holloway at UFC 318, but ultimately it wasn’t enough.
Poirier (30-10 MMA, 22-9 UFC) came up short of his fairytale retirement end this past Saturday when he dropped a unanimous decision to Holloway (27-8 MMA, 23-8 UFC) in their BMF title trilogy bout in front of a raucous home state crowd in Louisiana.
It was a largely thrilling affair, with Poirier getting hurt by strikes in the first and second rounds before nearly scoring a wild finish of his own late in Round 2. It was during that time where Davis, who served as a longtime boxing coach to Davis, started to see where the fight was really trending, and did his best to alter it.
“I felt like I needed more volume,” Davis told MMA Junkie. “We had to keep up with Max’s pace. There were instances in the fight where I was asking him to be first, or, ‘If you land a good shot to follow it up. You’ve got to test the water to see if the guy is hurt. You land a big shot, you’ve got to follow up and put him away.’ In between rounds I was asking for more volume.
“After Round 2, I kind of felt like the fight was getting away from us a little bit. I was trying to be instrumental in the corner to make sure he could go out there and change the direction of the fight. Even though he almost finished him in the second, going into Round 3 and Round 4, the writing was a little bit on the wall. In order to try to change the trajectory of the fight, I needed more output.”
Poirier, 36, couldn’t deliver that output and lost by 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46 scorecards. Holloway outlanded him 198-to-109 in significant strikes, with each being credited with one knockdown.
“I try to watch the fight from an unbiased eye,” Davis said. “Max’s volume and body work was on display. He was busier. He was getting off and he was mobile, so he was able to get off his shots and then move. It kind of felt like we were almost chasing him a little bit and not able to get off when he was in position to punch.”
Although everyone on Poirier’s team would’ve like to see him win the retirement fight, the result was somewhat inconsequential when “The Diamond” put down the gloves and was celebrated for his career.
Davis has been there for much of the journey, with Poirier’s knockout of Conor McGregor at UFC 257 in January 2021 being a distinct moment. Their personal relationship will go on, but Davis admits the process leading up to his farewell bout and the subsequent aftermath has led to much emotional turbulence.
“Leading up this fight it’s been bittersweet,” Davis said. “We know he’s had a monumental career and it’s coming to an end, but he deserves to see what’s on the other side of it. He’s been at this for a very long time. It’s bittersweet, but I’m happy.”
