Dustin Poirier says he still hasn’t seen the viral video of his arrest at the Atlanta Airport, but he knows through piecing things together he was completely in the wrong.
The former UFC interim lightweight champ was arrested for public drunkenness on Father’s Day, but days later, body cam footage was released that saw Poirier acting erratic and threatening a police officer. Eventually, “The Diamond” succumbed to the situation he was in and was arrested.
While Poirier did release a couple of social media posts, he did his first public interview and was asked what happened that day.
“The desk agent might have saw I was intoxicated and was like, ‘No, you can’t get on the plane,’ and that might have [been] what started it,” Poirier said on The Diary of a CEO. “I don’t know. But I do want to apologize to those desk agents, whoever they are, and the police for having to put up with me, man.
“I actually asked a lawyer in Atlanta, who I’ve been working with, if he can, please, give me that officer’s information, his address, if I can write him a letter, his cell phone if I can call him. Just to tell him how great of a job he did dealing with a person in that condition, and how professional he was. He was incredible. It could’ve been so much worse.
“I just want to thank him. I didn’t get to do that.”
Towards the end of the video, Poirier is shown dapping up the police officer he was dealing with throughout the situation. The retired fighter dove reflected on things a bit more and is thankful that he was with an officer who handled things in such a professional way.
“Maybe I realized what was going on, maybe I had an aha moment, like what the hell? What am I doing?,” Poirier explained. “Looking back at it now — with what they’re telling me and the way he handled it — he did a great job. I need to thank him because, like I said, it could’ve been so much worse.
“What if it was a young, hot head cop who wanted to be a superstar, or wanted to… it could’ve been horrible. I could be sitting here facing serious charges. And just to put my wife and my children through that, just, it’s not good.”
Poirier says he’s experienced alcoholic behavior through his father, and losing that relationship over the years. While those old feelings popped up, Poirier knows the onus is on him.
“He’s ruined his marriages, he’s ruined his relationships, he’s ruined his friendship, he’s ruined his relationships with his family, with his kids,” Poirier said. “He has two kids who won’t speak to him at all. He’s been in jail plenty of times for alcohol-related stuff. He’s actually homeless right now. … I try to help him, and he’s back on the street. It’s like he almost doesn’t want help.
“On Father’s Day, I was traveling to work, and I just couldn’t stop thinking about my father. I started drinking at the airport, and that’s what kind of led to the incident. When I feel like that, and I’ve been going to therapy – years ago I started going to therapy. … Obviously, I did what I did. Alcohol has never benefited me, especially in times where I’m mentally not the best.”
Poirier hasn’t had his first court appearance from the incident yet. In the state of Georgia, public drunkenness carries a punishment of up to one year in jail or up to $1,000 in fines, or both.
As far as his thoughts on watching himself in the viral video, Poirier says he still hasn’t seen a single second of it — which is something that will continue.
“No [I haven’t seen it] — my wife watched it, a buddy of mine, I’ve kind of pieced it together at this point,” Poirier said. “I don’t want to see it. … I just don’t want to see it, man.
“To see myself in that condition, disrespecting police officers, disrespecting workers at the airport disrespecting myself, disrespecting my family, I just don’t feel like it’s going to benefit me to see that. If anything, I think it’s going to bring me down, I’m going to keep thinking about it. Like I said, for the most part, I understand what happened, know what happened, I don’t need to see it again.”
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