New reports claim the long-expected Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight title bout pitting Dustin Poirer vs Charles Oliveira is set to be the headliner for the promotion’s final pay-per-view of 2021.
On Wednesday, MMAFighting was first to report, from multiple sources, that lightweight champion Charles Oliveira (31-8) and top contender Dustin Poirier (28-6) have verbally agreed to the planned matchup. However, contracts to make it official are yet to be signed.
Dustin Poirier vs Charles Oliveira verbally agreed to for UFC 269
The matchup between the two men thought to be the best 155-pound mixed martial artists in the world has been expected since “The Diamond’s” second straight victory over former division titleholder Conor McGregor in July. The trilogy matchup between the two hated rivals was thought to be an unofficial title eliminator matchup, with the winner being a shoo-in for the next championship opportunity.
Poirier, 32, scored a technical knockout victory over “Notorious” after McGregor suffered a fractured leg in the closing minute of the opening round. The win was a third straight for the Louisiana native following his unification title fight loss to undefeated former champion Khabib Nurmagomedov in September of 2019.
Poirier is currently the second-ranked fighter on our MixedMartialArts.com lightweight rankings.
Oliveira’s bout with Poirier will be his first title defense, following his TKO victory over Michael Chandler at UFC 262. The matchup was made for the title Nurmagomedov vacated after defeating Poirier. The 31-year-old is in the midst of a nine-fight win streak inside the Octagon.
Oliveira owns the top spot on our UFC lightweight rankings.
An official venue and location have not yet been set for UFC 269. The December card will also feature a second title fight when two-division queen Amanda Nunes defends her bantamweight title against top contender Julianna Pena in the card’s co-main event.
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