Poirier stunned after Charles Oliveira overwhelms Max Holloway

Dustin Poirier admitted he did not expect Charles Oliveira to defeat Max Holloway so convincingly at UFC 326.

Oliveira (37-11 MMA, 24-11 UFC) dominated Holloway (27-9 MMA, 23-9 UFC) on the ground to capture the BMF title in Saturday’s main event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Throughout the fight, Oliveira took Holloway down five times and controlled him for more than 20 minutes.

Poirier, who had predicted a Holloway victory, said he witnessed his former opponent struggle in a way he had never seen before.

“That was complete domination,” Poirier said on the UFC on Paramount+ post-fight show. “Going into the fight, I expected there to be moments where Max might be in trouble, maybe backed up against the fence or stuck on his back. But I never imagined it would last the entire 25 minutes.

“We’ve never seen Max dominated like that before. Charles looked possessed out there. He pressured Max, pushed him back to the fence, and used these awkward takedowns. It wasn’t traditional wrestling technique. He just powered him to the ground with hip tosses and body locks, and Max simply had no answer for it.”

Poirier’s final fight of his career ended in a unanimous decision loss to Holloway for the BMF title at UFC 318 last July.