Poirier def. Holloway
Decision (unanimous) · Round 5 · 5:00
Poirier vs Holloway — Interim Lightweight Title · UFC 236
What happened
Dustin Poirier won the interim lightweight title in Atlanta, using heavier counters and late damage to hold off Max Holloway's volume as the featherweight champion moved up in weight. Holloway rallied in the middle rounds, but a Poirier knee opened a deep forehead cut in the fourth that proved decisive over 25 minutes.
- Poirier hurt Holloway repeatedly in the opening two rounds with heavier counters.
- A knee in round four opened a severe forehead cut that turned the late rounds Poirier's way.
- 49–46
- 49–46
- 49–46
Watch
The full fight.
More videos · 2 clips
Signature moments
Signature moments
Analysts
No verified pre-fight analyst picks are logged for this historical bout.
Track record rows appear only when a timestamped source has been reviewed.
Archive
Pre-fight material — kept for transparency, folded by default.
Tale of the Tape
Records & career stats — as they entered fight night
- 25-5-0
- Record
- 20-4-0
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- Recent formRecent formWin–loss record over the fighter’s last five bouts, newest first, as carried in their UFC/FightMetric career stats.
- 3-2 last 5
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- Age
- 34
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- Height
- 1.80 m
- —
- Reach
- 175 cm
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- StanceStanceWhich side a fighter leads from — a striking term, not a religious one. Orthodox: right-handed, left foot and hand forward (the common default). Southpaw: the mirror image, right side forward (usually a left-hander). Switch: changes between the two during a fight.
- Orthodox
- —
- Finish rateFinish %Finish rateThe share of a fighter’s wins that ended inside the distance — by KO/TKO or submission — rather than going to the judges’ scorecards. Higher means more finishes.
- 54%
- —
- Wins by KO/TKOKO/TKO wins
- 13
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- Wins by submissionSub wins
- 2
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- Sig. strikes landed / minStrikes / minSignificant strikes landed per minuteAverage number of significant strikes a fighter lands for every minute of fight time — a read on striking output and pace. From UFC/FightMetric career stats.
- 6.91
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- Sig. strikes absorbed / minAbsorbed / minSignificant strikes absorbed per minuteAverage number of significant strikes a fighter takes for every minute of fight time. Lower is better — it means they get hit less often. From UFC/FightMetric career stats.
- 4.61
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- Striking defenseStrike def.Striking defenseThe percentage of opponents’ significant strikes that do not land — strikes slipped, blocked or evaded. Higher is better. Not the same as striking accuracy, which counts your own strikes that land. From UFC/FightMetric.
- 59%
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- Takedown defenseTD def.Takedown defenseThe percentage of opponents’ takedown attempts that are stuffed. Higher means harder to put on the mat. From UFC/FightMetric.
- 81%
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- Avg. fight timeAvg. timeAverage fight timeThe mean length of the fighter’s bouts (minutes:seconds) — a rough read on whether they tend to finish early or go the distance. From UFC/FightMetric.
- 16:39
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- Nationality
- USA
Career stats per UFC.com; recent form is each fighter's last five bouts. Numbers reflect records coming into fight night. Bars compare each stat on a fixed scale; the “Edge” marker flags the leading corner where the gap is meaningful. The snapshot plots five career rates — output, striking defense, durability (strikes absorbed, inverted), takedown defense and finish rate — each normalised on its own scale.
Pre-fight analysis — how we saw it going in
Case for Poirier
Poirier's path was the lightweight power edge. Holloway could out-volume almost anyone at featherweight, but Poirier's counters, jab and left hand gave every exchange a different consequence at 155 pounds.
Case for Holloway
Holloway's case was pace. If he could survive Poirier's early damage and force the fight into the deeper rounds, his volume and cardio could turn the interim title fight from a power matchup into an attritional one.
What We Were Watching For
- Poirier's early left hand and right hook, which immediately test Holloway at lightweight.
- Holloway's third-round surge, where the volume begins to look like his usual winning rhythm.
- The fourth-round knee and cut, the clearest late moment that swings the title fight back to Poirier.
Fighters
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