5 iconic quotes about Islam Makhachev from Khabib Nurmagomedov and others who know him
Islam Makhachev has been the subject of discussions in MMA circuits worldwide, with many insiders tipping him to be the next dominant force at lightweight. Islam Makhachev dominated the Russian MMA scene before signing with the UFC in 2015. Makhachev scored a second-round submission victory over Leo Kuntz in his debut at UFC 187. Islam Makhachev would lose his next outing against Adriano Martins at UFC 192, getting clipped with a right hand from the Brazilian in the first round. He has not lost a fight since and is currently riding a six-fight win streak.
Islam Makhachev is also a friend of Khabib Nurmagomedov from Dagestan and is expected to take over the 'Eagle's legacy in the UFC. Teammates at American Kickboxing Academy, both fighters were trained by Khabib's late father, the great Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. Before his bout against Drew Dober at UFC 259, we take a look at five iconic quotes about Islam Makhachev from Khabib Nurmagomedov and others who know him:
5. Ali Abdelaziz makes Islam Makhachev the first line of defence
Islam Makhachev had some difficulties finding opponents after his bout against Rafael Dos Anjos was scrapped. In a bid to find worthy opponents for his fighter, Ali Abdelaziz offered a fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov if opponents could get past Islam Makhachev. Ali Abdelaziz, who manages various fighters around the world including Khabib Nurmagomedov, spoke to TMZ Sports about a potential rematch between Khabib and Conor McGregor:
"He needs to get some wins and he needs to fight some good opponents. I said, the only way he can fight Khabib is if he fights Islam Makhachev, then he can fight Khabib."
Around the same time, Ali Abdelaziz had also offered Tony Ferguson a sum of $100k for fighting Islam Makhachev.
4. Daniel Cormier lauds Islam Makhachev's wrestling
Former two-division champion Daniel Cormier is known for his camaraderie with Khabib Nurmagomedov. Training together at AKA, Cormier has always been appreciative of the talent of Islam Makhachev. While Khabib Nurmagomedov is known for his beastly ground game, Daniel Cormier even claimed that Islam Makhachev could be a better wrestler than Khabib. Daniel Cormier said:
"Straight wrestling, among of all those guys, Islam is the best one. In straight wrestling, I think he would beat Khabib."
Further complementing Makhachev's stand-up as well, Cormier said:
"You could see that this kid was kind of like Khabib, with a little tighter stand-up. Today, Khabib will tell you he'll stand and strike with whoever he wants to.... Islam seemed a little more ready to go."
3. When Islam Makhachev won a round against Khabib
Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev both train under coach Javier Mendez, who is also now the head coach at Eagle's MMA in Russia. Javier Mendez has stated that Islam Makhachev was the only fighter to win a round against Khabib Nurmagomedov in sparring. In an interview with Helen Yee Sports, Javier Mendes said:
"He matches up great with all of them. And listen, this is no secret. I’ve always said…when people talk to me about Khabib sparring and I say he’s never lost a sparring session in the history of sparring with me, never. And I would say he does lose a round here and there, and the one thing that I have never said, (against) who. And the person ‘who’ is Islam (Makachev). He’s the only one that’s ever won a round against Khabib, ever. Ever. He’s the only one that’s ever done it. No one’s ever beat Khabib in a round. In all the years that he’s been here with me, the nine years, non one’s ever beat him, never. So if Islam is winning a round here and there, how good is Islam."
2. The uncrowned King of the lightweight division
Confident in Islam Makhachev's future at the top of the division, Daniel Cormier has already started to address him as 'Champion'. With Khabib retired, DC believes that the path is now paved for Makhachev's reign as king of the lightweights. Daniel Cormier said:
"You knew as long as Khabib was the champion, Islam was going to take a slower approach to moving up the rankings. But now, Khabib and I talked about it, everybody believes that Islam can be the man. Now, with Khabib [retired], I believe now [Islam] starts to make his ascent. For 10 straight years, we've had title fights out of AKA. How do we continue that? Islam is the guy. We all believe right now Islam is our next best chance to have someone great."
1. Khabib understands why fighters are afraid to take on Islam Makhachev
Khabib Nurmagomedov has been vocal in campaigning about his teammate Islam Makhachev as the next big thing in MMA. Islam Makhachev was scheduled to fight Rafael Dos Anjos at UFC 254 but the bout never came to fruitition as RDA tested positive for COVID 19. As Makhachev struggled to find ranked opponents, Khabib was of the opinion that the top contenders were ducking Islam Makhachev. In a press conference leading up to UFC 254, Khabib told the media:
I think because of how dangerous he is in the cage, and I think because of his ranking. A lot of guys like top five, top six, top seven don’t wanna fight him because it is a risk for them. Right now, Islam’s position is very hard, but after one or two fights, everything is going to change. A lot of people are gonna want this fight after one year. Stay ready, keep training, and keep fighting. This is what he (Makhachev) needs right now.
In another interview with ESPN, Khabib said:
"Now, everybody talks about Dustin, Conor, Chandler, Justin, Oliveira. But by the end of the year, it's gonna be changed. I don't think anyone can beat [Makhachev] right now. He will run [the division]."