Buckley confronts Poirier and Strickland over racial slur use, both fighters respond

UFC welterweight Joaquin Buckley took to social media on Tuesday to directly confront Dustin Poirier and Sean Strickland over their separate uses of a racial slur, drawing a sharp response from both fighters.

Poirier’s incident stems from his arrest at Atlanta International Airport this past June, where he was detained for public drunkenness. Footage of the confrontation spread rapidly online, showing the former UFC lightweight champion challenging a police officer to a fight and using the phrase, “It’s gonna be bad my n*gga.” Poirier faced widespread criticism at the time and later issued an apology, also expressing gratitude to the officers involved in his arrest.

Buckley’s decision to revisit the episode was triggered by Poirier publicly praising UFC heavyweight contender Josh Hokit, a fighter who has drawn attention through deliberate use of provocative and offensive commentary. For Buckley, that endorsement was the final straw.

“It all makes sense to me now,” Buckley said. “Dustin Poirier, you ain’t fooling nobody. All that crying you was doing in them interviews, talking about, ‘Man, I just need a distraction. If I don’t have a good distraction, if I don’t have something to focus on, I get into chaos.’ All that shit was bullshit. All of it was.”

Buckley also took issue with the language Poirier directed at bystanders who witnessed the arrest, specifically the way he addressed women present at the scene. “Now look, I understand if you’re upset, but why the black ladies got to be some hos and shit?” Buckley said, before noting that the officer Poirier confronted showed considerable restraint. “The dude showed you grace, because he’s like, ‘No, I don’t want no smoke with you.’”

Buckley went on to question the authenticity of Poirier’s change in demeanour once additional officers arrived on the scene. “You sobered up real quick,” he said. “Don’t change up your energy now. Stand on that.”

Both Poirier and Strickland have since responded to Buckley’s comments, with the exchange drawing significant attention across MMA social media. The full nature of their replies was still circulating at the time of publication.