Dustin Poirier says he’s “at the point where I need some help” after police video from his Father’s Day arrest at Hartsfield-Jackson airport near Atlanta showed him cursing and acting aggressively toward airport employees and an officer. The former UFC champ,
Dustin Poirier’s confession came after the footage—and it landed with a different weight than the anger on camera.
On Tuesday night. the former UFC champion posted on Instagram saying he’s struggling and that walking away from fighting “hasn’t been easy” for him. He wrote that he’s “at the point where I need some help. ” adding. “alcohol isn’t the answer.” Poirier said alcohol “has ruined my father’s life” and promised. “I will not allow it to ruin mine. ” insisting. “my family deserves me at 100%.”.
He ended his message to fans with a vow to keep moving forward. “I’m trying to do everything I can to get my mind right and take the right next steps.”
The post followed a week of public scrutiny after a police video showed Poirier behaving aggressively at Hartsfield-Jackson airport near Atlanta before and around his arrest on Sunday. The story broke earlier this week, with the arrest happening on Father’s Day around 4PM.
The exact sequence on the airplane before takeoff remains unclear. but Poirier was removed from the aircraft and “flipped out.” In the body camera footage. he is shown acting aggressively with airport staff and an officer trying to de-escalate the situation. At one point, Poirier said, “Let’s go, big dog. Let’s go, big dog. What’s up?. Buncha hos. Let’s go. Let’s go. F***in’ lying motherf****r. Yeah, pulled me off the plane, all my boys went to the f***in’ crib. Now, what the f***?”.
He later squared up and told the man, “Man, f*** you and f*** her and f*** her. I’ll fight you right now,” before the officer retreated and called for help.
Despite the heated moments captured on video, Poirier ultimately went peacefully with police. The report also says he even “dapped up the officer” he initially cussed out.
Poirier was arrested for “Public Drunk,” a misdemeanor that can carry up to one year in jail if there’s a conviction.
What Poirier is saying now shifts the focus beyond the court process. Even with a criminal case ahead, he’s describing a longer struggle that he says began after retiring. He’s 37 and is described as a fighter who retired in July. In his Instagram message. he acknowledged that quitting fighting hasn’t been easy on him—and then made his point plain: alcohol isn’t helping.
There’s an added tension in the contrast between the athlete many fans know as both one of the sport’s best and one of its most charitable figures. and the moments caught in the airport footage. The body camera shows the outburst. The Instagram post shows the aftermath he says he’s living with—and the help he says he needs.
Poirier’s message ends with a promise to take “the right next steps.” For a fighter who remains popular in the sport, fans will be watching to see what comes next—both in the legal case and, as he’s emphasized, in the effort to get his life back to where it’s supposed to be.
Dustin Poirier UFC arrest Father’s Day Hartsfield-Jackson airport alcohol struggle Instagram Public Drunk airport incident
That video is wild… like airport employees aren’t trying to box him.
I don’t even know the full story but if he says alcohol ruined his dad’s life then maybe he should’ve been getting help way before this. The “let’s go big dog” stuff sounds like he was drunk and just spiraling.
Wait so he got arrested and then it turned out he was just mad about something on the plane?? Like I saw a clip where he was yelling and I’m guessing the officer did him dirty or something. But alcohol isn’t the answer though right? Idk.
Ugh why is it always “former champ” like that means anything. I believe he needs help but also… the airport video makes him look scary as hell. Also he said his family deserves him at 100%—okay, but then don’t go acting like that in public. Hope he actually follows through and not just posts a sad Instagram and calls it rehab.