Khabib Nurmagomedov has successfully defended his lightweight championship at UFC 242.
Fighting for the first time since defeating Conor McGregor on an unforgettable night last October, Nurmagomedov produced a flawless performance to beat Poirier, forcing the interim champion to tap out via a rear-naked chokehold in the third round.
The Dagestan fighter extends his flawless MMA record to 28-0 after executing a perfect game plan in the octagon, dominating Poirier with his superior wrestling game in the sweltering heat of Abu Dhabi.
Poirier endured an energy-sapping first round with Nurmagomedov applying relentless pressure, keeping his opponent grounded before ending the round with a flurry of vicious elbows to the head.
The now former interim champion began the second round encouragingly, landing a sharp right hook early on that forced 'The Eagle' to retreat.
But after carefully slipping out his opponent's range, Nurmagomedov superbly countered Poirier's own submission and locked on the choke that would force the tap.
In scenes similar to those that shocked the world moments after beating McGregor last year, Nurmagomedov rushed across the octagon to scale the cage - this time to celebrate with UFC president Dana White sat in the front row.
On the undercard, Joanne 'Jojo' Calderwood secured a hugely impressive victory over Andrea Lee.
The Scottish flyweight, ranked fifth in her division heading into the bout, landed a vicious elbow early on that sent the American to the mat en route to the win.
Having suffered defeat last time out, Calderwood now hauls herself back into the flyweight world title picture, with Valentina Shevchenko currently ruling the 125 lbs division.
Manchester fighter Lerone Murphy made his UFC debut earlier on, surviving an early onslaught to leave with a hugely impressive split decision draw with Zubaira Tukhugov.
