logo
Max Holloway retains UFC BMF title, spoils Dustin Poirier's retirement fight

Max Holloway retains UFC BMF title, spoils Dustin Poirier's retirement fight

National Post20-07-2025
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Max Holloway said he wanted to play spoiler and he did it Saturday night in the main event.
Article content
Holloway defeated Dustin Poirier in a unanimous decision to retain the UFC BMF Championship in UFC 318 at the Smoothie King Center.
Article content
Article content
The win for Holloway is the first in three fights against Poirier, who beat him in 2012 and 2019.
Article content
Holloway (28-8) retained his BMF title after landing 98 more strikes (201-109) and landing 53% of his significant strikes.
Article content
Fighting against a partisan Louisiana crowd for the native son Poirier in his retirement match, Holloway was the quicker fighter for the entire match, knocking Poirier off his feet early in the first round.
Article content
In the second, another flurry of combinations put Poirier on the mat again, followed by two minutes of dominant grappling.
Article content
'I'm pretty happy,' Holloway said. Poirier can still hit hard, he said. 'but he kept coming back and back. I came in and I knew I was going to try and be the spoiler and the villain.'
Article content
Poirier's best chance came in the last 30 seconds of the second round, getting Holloway on the ground with a chokehold and several ground punches before the round ended.
Article content
The loss ends a brilliant career for Poirier, who finishes his career with a 30-10 record. Poirier, the UFC Lightweight Interim Champion in 2019, also defeated the likes of Conor McGregor twice in addition to victories over Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler.
'Obviously I wanted to win, but being inside the eye of the storm I thought the fight was a lot closer,' Poirier said. 'I thought I had him out in the second round, we couldn't hear the bell. The fight just felt a lot closer. It is what it is though.
Article content
Article content
'Going into the fifth round I thought it was close. I feel like I could have maybe put myself in harm's way more. I could have taken more chances, but I didn't want to take too many risks. I thought I fought smart. I tried to win.'
Article content
In the co-main event, Paulo Costa (15-4) snapped a three-match losing streak, defeating Roman Kopylov for a middleweight division win by a unanimous decision.
Article content
Daniel Rodriguez (20-5) won his third consecutive fight after a unanimous decision over Kevin Holland in welterweight action in a significant upset. Rodriguez was +425 to win the fight, but beat Holland (28-14), who lost his second fight of 2025.
Article content
In the featherweight division, Patricio Freire beat Dan Ige by a unanimous decision. Freire (37-8) dominated the three-round fight, taking down Ige five times.
The five-fight main card opened with a unanimous decision upset win by Michael Johnson over Daniel Zellhuber in the lightweight action. Johnson opened the fight +475 according to Bet MGM. Johnson (25-19) landed 81 strikes compared to only 52 from Zellhuber as he won his third consecutive fight.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

World Junior Summer Showcase roster includes hockey players from Kitchener and Brantford
World Junior Summer Showcase roster includes hockey players from Kitchener and Brantford

CTV News

timean hour ago

  • CTV News

World Junior Summer Showcase roster includes hockey players from Kitchener and Brantford

Kitchener Rangers defenceman Cameron Reid and Brantford Bulldogs players Owen Protz, Jake O'Brien and Marek Vanacker are seen in this undated collage (Courtesy: OHL). The long-awaited World Junior Summer Showcase is underway in Minneapolis, Minn., and several Ontario Hockey League (OHL) players from Kitchener and Brantford are among those taking part. The annual event serves as an evaluation camp for players aiming to earn a spot on their national team for the 2026 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Junior Hockey Championship, set to begin in December. Players from Canada, the United States, Sweden and Finland have been invited to represent their respective countries. This year, Hockey Canada selected 44 players from across the country to participate. Among them are Kitchener Rangers defenceman Cameron Reid and Brantford Bulldogs players Owen Protz, Jake O'Brien and Marek Vanacker. Throughout the week, athletes will take part in practices, scrimmages and three exhibition games against international opponents. Participants are split into two teams—Red and White—for internal matchups, including an intrasquad game scheduled for July 29. Canada is then set to face Finland on July 30, Sweden on Aug. 1 and the United States on Aug. 2. The IIHF uses a three-point system during competition: three points are awarded to the team that wins in regulation, one point each if the game is tied after regulation and an additional point to the winner of a five-minute overtime or shootout. Guelph Storm forward Jett Luchanko was also invited by Hockey Canada but was unable to attend the showcase. The World Junior Summer Showcase wraps up on Aug. 2. The 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship will run from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minn.

Blue Jays denied a Motown sweep when red-hot bats suddenly go cold
Blue Jays denied a Motown sweep when red-hot bats suddenly go cold

National Post

timean hour ago

  • National Post

Blue Jays denied a Motown sweep when red-hot bats suddenly go cold

One has to go back to June 13 to find a time when the Blue Jays were shutout, an 8-0 setback in Philadelphia against a very good Phillies team loaded with quality starters. Article content Technically, the Jays did score in Sunday's in loss, but it was checkered, to say the least, because it came off a recently DFA'd pitcher in a ninth inning featuring a bad call by the home plate ump that led to a walk, the first of three, followed by defensive indifference. Article content Article content Article content Either way, the Jays weren't good, save for their starter and cleanup hitter, and should have been held scoreless until a series of unusual circumstances helped the visitors in the ninth. Article content The Tigers, despite leading the AL Central, have not been good, losers of six in a row and 12 of their past 13 heading into Sunday's series finale. Article content One could argue the Tigers were long overdue. Article content At no time in franchise history have the Jays earned a four-game sweep in Motown, an elusive feat that would continue following their 10-4 loss. Article content In the opening three games of the series, the Jays outscored the Tigers 23-7. Article content The only player from the bottom of the order to record a hit was Tyler Heineman, who will be expected to fill the void behind the plate in the absence of Alejandro Kirk. Article content Four-run innings have been the norm of late with the Blue Jays, who were on the receiving end when Detroit plated seven in the eighth, a truly ugly frame when the MLB-leading team unraveled. Article content The following are three takeaways on an afternoon the Jays would lose a game for only the second time since the all-star break, but they would take the season series from the Tigers. Article content Article content 1. Mad Max in the Motor City Article content On his 41st birthday, veteran Max Scherzer started against a team he spent five years from 2010 through 2014, which included a World Series appearance in 2012. Article content He's been built up after injuring his thumb in Scherzer's debut with the Blue Jays. Article content Sunday's outing was Scherzer's seventh start of the season. Article content In the first inning, he struck out two by resorting to his fastball. Article content During the Jays' stay at Comerica Park, the team has received solid starting pitching, beginning with Eric Lauer, who was at his absolute best in Thursday's series opener. Article content After retiring the first six hitters, Scherzer gave up a single and double to begin the third inning. Article content He almost got out of the inning unscathed until Gleyber Torres took Scherzer deep for a three-run blast. Article content It was the eighth longball Scherzer has yielded this season and fifth in his past three starts.

Canada's Leylah Fernandez wins DC Open with 6-1, 6-2 victory over Anna Kalinskaya
Canada's Leylah Fernandez wins DC Open with 6-1, 6-2 victory over Anna Kalinskaya

Globe and Mail

timean hour ago

  • Globe and Mail

Canada's Leylah Fernandez wins DC Open with 6-1, 6-2 victory over Anna Kalinskaya

Leylah Fernandez collected the biggest title of her career at the DC Open with her most lopsided victory of the tournament, defeating Anna Kalinskaya 6-1, 6-2 in the final on Sunday. The left-handed Fernandez, a 22-year-old from Canada who is ranked 36th, earned her fourth singles trophy — all have come at hard-court tournaments — and first at a WTA 500 event. She came quite close to a Grand Slam championship as a teenager at the 2021 U.S. Open, making it all the way to the final in New York before losing to Emma Raducanu. There almost was a rematch in Washington, but Kalinskaya eliminated Raducanu in the semifinals Saturday. Until Sunday, the 48th-ranked Kalinskaya had not dropped a set all week. However, she wasn't able to keep up with Fernandez, who saved the only break point she faced while taking four of Kalinskaya's service games in a match that lasted 1 hour, 10 minutes. One key: Fernandez claimed 10 of the 12 points in the match when Kalinskaya hit a second serve. Another: Kalinskaya finished with 24 unforced errors and just nine winners. This was the first title for Fernandez since October 2023 at the Hong Kong Open. She dedicated this victory to her mother, her older sister and her fitness trainer. 'Thank you so much for never giving up on me — and don't give up on yourselves,' Fernandez said. 'This trophy is for you guys.' She arrived in Washington with a losing record this season and hadn't won more than two matches at the same tournament since last November. With a mix of baseline excellence and strong net play, Fernandez eliminated top-seeded Jessica Pegula – the U.S. Open runner-up last year – and No. 3 seed Elena Rybakina – the Wimbledon champion in 2022 – on the way to the final. The win against Rybakina in Saturday's semifinals took three tiebreakers and more than three hours to decide. 'Amazing fight this week,' Kalinskaya told Fernandez after the title match. 'You truly deserve it.' There was no such drama against Kalinskaya, a 26-year-old Russian who fell to 0-3 in tour-level finals. She lost to Jasmine Paolini in Dubai and to Pegula in Berlin last year. The men's final scheduled for later Sunday was No. 7 seed Alex de Minaur against No. 12 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who defeated No. 1 Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals and No. 4 Ben Shelton in the semifinals.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store