Salt Lake City, Utah — Safford native Justin Gaethje (25-4) is back in action on Saturday night in the UFC 291 Main Event against Dustin Poirier (29-7) in a rematch of the 2018 Fight of the Year.
There is a belt on the line, but it isn’t a championship belt, but some say it’s more coveted. The BMF belt has only been held by one other fighter in UFC history. Jorge Masvidal beat Nate Diaz for the belt back in 2019 and after Masvidal’s retirement, the UFC put the belt back on the line this weekend.
The winner of Saturday night’s main event will put their name in the hat for a lightweight title shot in the near future.
In interviews this leading up to the fight both fighters have agreed that they have matured as mixed martial artists since their initial meeting. Gaethje has seemed more tactical in his last 3 fights and Poirier has worked heavily on his wrestling and takedowns.
This matchup has all the makings of another fight of the year and once the cage locks as Gaethje said this week, “It will be a car crash in a cage.”
Both fighters made weight with Gaethje coming in at 156 pounds and Poirier at 155.
UFC 291 is available on ESPN pay per view with the main card started at 7pm Arizona time.
