Eddie Alvarez to Dustin Poirier: “See you in Calgary”

Earlier this month, it was reported that the UFC’s July 28 return to Calgary, Alberta, Canada could be headlined by a rematch between top lightweight contenders Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier.

While these reports were met with heaps of excitement, it then sounded as though the fight wouldn’t be happening after all, as Alvarez assured MMA Fighting‘s Ariel Helwani that he wouldn’t be competing until he worked out a new deal with the UFC.

“It’s not fucking happening,” Alvarez said of his reported rematch with Poirier. “I’m not fighting until I get a new deal.”

From the looks of it, however, Alvarez and the UFC have worked things out. On Thursday morning, Alvarez took to Twitter to tell Poirier that he would see him in Calgary.

https://twitter.com/Ealvarezfight/status/994599154419752961

“See you in Calgary [Dustin Poirier],” Alvarez said in his Tweet. “Best of luck my friend.”

Needless to say, it sounds like this anticipated rematch is on. 

Poirier and Alvarez first met in May of 2017, on the undercard of UFC 211. On that night, the pair battled to a disappointing no-contest, as Alvarez landed an illegal strike in the second frame, and Poirier could not continue.

In his next fight, Alvarez became the first man to defeat former World Series of Fighting champion Justin Gaethje, putting the then-undefeated fighter down with a third-round knee. Poirier, meanwhile, has rebounded from his controversial fight with Alvarez with a TKO of former champion Anthony Pettis, and his own knockout win over Justin Gaethje.

While it’s impossible to say for sure, this showdown between the former champ Eddie Alvarez and the surging contender Dustin Poirier could well produce the first title challenger for new UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Who do you think comes out on top in this anticipated rematch in Calgary?

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 5/10/2018.