Dustin Poirier confirms Lil Wayne will partake in UFC 318 walkout
After hinting at the possibility in recent weeks, Poirier (30-9 MMA, 22-8 UFC) confirmed Wednesday that rap legend Lil Wayne will accompany him during his final UFC walk. Lil Wayne's presence won't deter Poirier from sticking with his classic walkout music, however. Poirier will still walk to James Brown's "The Boss" as he long has.
"It will be a little bit of James Brown, a little bit of Wayne," Poirier told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. "Yeah, Wayne's walking out with me. ... I have to (stick with the James Brown song). I've paid the cost to be the boss. On my last one, I can't go that far away from it. I need to hear that. I need to feel that vibe before I fight someone."
Lil Wayne has long been a UFC fan, and particularly a Poirier fan, often posting on social media during fight nights.
It's unclear if Wayne will perform in any capacity. The UFC and Dana White have long expressed their disinterest in live walkout performances, with the exception of UFC 189 when Conor McGregor walked out to Sinead O'Connor performing "Foggy Dew" and Chad Mendes walked out to Aaron Lewis performing "Country Boy."
However, White has been open to celebrities making the walk with fighters, like when Jack Black and Kyle Gass accompanied Stephen Thompson to the cage at UFC 296 in December 2023, or when Mark Zuckerberg walked out with Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 298 in February 2024.
Poirier, 36, fights Max Holloway for the BMF title in the main event Saturday. The bout will stream on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
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