Dustin Poirier Blasts Joaquin Buckley Over Airport Arrest Drama, Drawing Fiery Face-To-Face Warning

Dustin Poirier fired back at Joaquin Buckley's criticism regarding his June arrest at Atlanta's airport, accusing the welterweight of orchestrating public drama to hunt for online attention.

The sharp exchange ignited when Buckley took direct aim at the former interim UFC lightweight champion on social media.

Poirier was arrested in June on suspicion of public intoxication at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

Following that incident, the fan favorite offered a public apology for his behavior.

Buckley, however, publicly questioned the sincerity of Poirier's remorse.

The welterweight contender also criticized Poirier over his alleged use of a racial slur during that arrest.

Buckley did not stop at criticizing the apology online.

He challenged Poirier to address the matter face-to-face.

POIRIER FIRES BACK

Poirier did not remain silent as Buckley continued to press the issue.

The veteran fighter issued an aggressive public response on Wednesday.

"Tryna get some views? Shut up or kill me!" Poirier wrote.

Poirier's blunt retort made it clear that he viewed Buckley's public call-out as an attempt to leverage controversy for clout.

In the modern landscape of mixed martial arts, online engagement often drives matchmaking and promotional visibility.

Social media feuds frequently serve as promotional currency for fighters looking to elevate their profiles.

Poirier clearly felt that Buckley was using his personal legal misstep to generate headlines.

BUCKLEY ISSUES DIRECT WARNING

Buckley quickly noticed Poirier's sharp response and took to video to answer the lightweight star directly.

Far from backing down, the welterweight embraced the attention the feud had generated.

"I like this comment right here," Buckley said in his video reply.

"It did what it needed to do," he continued.

"It got your attention," Buckley stated.

"It got views," he openly acknowledged.

However, Buckley took serious issue with the aggressive phrasing Poirier chose to employ.

"But this comment don’t make no sense," Buckley argued.

"This n*gga said, ‘Shut up or kill me,’" Buckley pointed out.

He then questioned how Poirier actually planned to resolve their growing animosity.

"How you really want to take care of this?" Buckley asked.

"How you really want to handle this, ‘DP?’" Buckley pressed.

"Because I promise you don’t want to do that," he warned.

FACE-TO-FACE DEMANDS

Buckley pushed his verbal counter-attack further by referencing Poirier's past comments.

"Not that long ago, that’s what you wanted to do to yourself," Buckley said.

"Delete yourself," Buckley added.

"Remove yourself from the Earth," he remarked.

"Don’t put a charge on me," Buckley insisted.

The welterweight then delivered a stern promise about what will happen when their paths inevitably cross in person.

"When I see you, let’s have that conversation. Let’s talk about it," Buckley said.

He made it clear that if a peaceful conversation is off the table, he is prepared for violence.

"And if you don’t want to talk, [I won’t talk] either, but you take the first swing," Buckley warned.

"You take the first swing, but I promise you I’ll get the first hit, though," Buckley stated.

A PARALLEL FEUD WITH STRICKLAND

The clash with Poirier is not the only high-profile confrontation Buckley has sparked in recent days.

Buckley has simultaneously engaged in a bitter feud with UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland.

That dispute also centered on the alleged use of a racial slur.

During a Brand Risk event back in May, Strickland sparked outrage by casually repeating a slur in conversation.

Strickland had remarked, "Tap n—a, I like that," drawing significant backlash across digital platforms.

Buckley was heavily questioned by fans about why he had not confronted Strickland over those controversial remarks.

Buckley eventually chose to address Strickland in person alongside an associate.

A HEATED IN-PERSON AMBUSH

Buckley and an associate approached Strickland at a recent event to confront him about his choice of words.

Buckley filmed the interaction and later posted the grainy footage to social media.

In the recording, Buckley can be heard confronting the middleweight titleholder.

"I see what you trying to do," Buckley told Strickland.

Buckley's associate then pressed Strickland further about his vocabulary.

"Brother, don’t call people the N-word. It’s offensive, G," the associate told the champion.

"It’s disrespectful, bro," the associate added.

Strickland did not apologize during the confrontation.

"If anybody tells me not to do anything, I am gonna do it," Strickland bluntly fired back.

Although the interaction remained tense, the situation did not boil over into a physical brawl on the spot.

The fighters eventually parted ways after several minutes of back-and-forth debate.

LEAKED SPARRING FOOTAGE

Buckley shared the interaction video online with a public statement about his approach.

"We saw Strickland and I approached him and I let him know I know what he doing but these platforms you got to be careful what you say at all time," Buckley wrote.

Buckley also claimed that people often avoid him when he attempts to have such sensitive discussions.

Strickland took severe issue with Buckley filming their private exchange and posting it online.

Rather than issuing a lengthy written statement, Strickland retaliated by releasing leaked gym footage.

The brief clip captured a sparring session between the two former training partners.

In the video, Strickland lands a counter strike on a rushing fighter who collapses immediately to the canvas.

While the video quality was somewhat grainy, Strickland made his target abundantly clear.

"Sit down Buckley," Strickland wrote in the caption.