A tactical error cost former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez big in the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary on Saturday, as an illegal elbow took a dominant position away and gave Dustin Poirier the opening he needed to hurt and stop Alvarez in the second round of their UFC Fight Night main event rematch.
“This is what I do, I live for this. I will never quit in here,” said Poirier, who engaged in a 2017 bout with Alvarez that ended in a controversial no contest.
Alvarez invested in body strikes in the opening round, mixing in head shots when Poirier would move into range. And though Poirier had a good middle portion of the round when he worked from long distance, Alvarez started and finished the round strong.
Alvarez got in trouble early in round two when he looked for a takedown and Poirier locked in a guillotine choke, but the Philadelphian was able to get free. The two then rose for a spell before an Alvarez takedown. The former champ took Poirier’s back and looked for a submission, and while Poirier got free, Alvarez remained in control until an illegal 12-6 elbow drew a warning from referee Marc Goddard and a restart. In a subsequent exchange, Poirier landed a knee that hurt Alvarez, and “The Diamond” went all-in for the finish. Hurting Alvarez repeatedly, Poirier poured it on, yet Alvarez still kept swinging until he couldn’t any longer, with Goddard stepping in at the 4:05 mark as Alvarez fell to the mat.
