5 things that Islam Makhachev can do to surpass the achievements of Khabib Nurmagomedov

When Islam Makhachev defeated Charles Oliveira to claim the vacant UFC lightweight title, he not only reached the top of the mountain, but he also followed in the footsteps of his mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov, too.

Now that he holds the UFC lightweight title, is there any way that Islam Makhachev could manage to surpass his legendary mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov?

Naturally, it won’t be easy. Khabib is recognized as one of the greatest fighters of all time, and his octagon career ended with his record sitting at an unbeaten 29-0. However, it’s not an impossible task by any means.

Here are five things that Islam Makhachev needs to do to be able to surpass Khabib Nurmagomedov.

#5. Islam Makhachev needs to achieve more than three successful UFC lightweight title defenses

Khabib Nurmagomedov made three lightweight title defenses, including this one over Dustin Poirier

For all the accolades that Khabib Nurmagomedov received during his career with the UFC, which began in 2012 and ended in late 2020, ‘The Eagle’ didn’t actually reign as lightweight champion for all that long.

He claimed the title, which was vacant at the time, by defeating Al Iaquinta in April 2018. While he didn’t relinquish his crown until October 2020, he only managed to make three successful defenses – beating Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje.

"This is my last fight."

@TeamKhabib pays his respects following a dominant performance at #UFC254 https://t.co/5HiUvJXBJC

Admittedly, there were some tricky circumstances around why Khabib didn’t make more defenses, as he spent lengthy periods away from the octagon due to Ramadan and part of his reign came during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, compared to some other UFC legends, three title defenses isn’t all that impressive. It’s certainly a number that Islam Makhachev could probably look to surpass in the near future.

If he can manage that, then not only would he have more defenses than his mentor, but he’d also become the most successful lightweight in UFC history, as three successful defenses is the division’s record, with both Benson Henderson and B.J. Penn also managing that amount.

So could Makhachev achieve this? It’s definitely possible given the way he dominated Charles Oliveira to claim the title. If he can get his first defense under his belt quickly, he’ll be well on his way.

#4. Islam Makhachev needs to win a second UFC title

Could Islam Makhachev claim a second UFC title in the future?

While he only made three successful defenses of his title, Khabib Nurmagomedov was undoubtedly very dominant over the lightweight division during his UFC career. It won’t be easy for Islam Makhachev to match him in that sense.

However, ‘The Eagle’ only dominated one division and never fought at any weight other than 155lbs throughout his tenure with the promotion. If Islam Makhachev could move weight class and claim a second title there, then, it’d definitely give him a claim of having surpassed his mentor.

So where could Makhachev look to achieve this? It’s probably unlikely that he could move down to 145lbs, as he already appears to cut a great deal of weight to make the 155lb lightweight limit. He also clearly has a big frame for the division.

However, he could certainly add some muscle and look to move up to 170lbs. While monstrous wrestlers like Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington would be tricky matches for him on paper, he actually matches well with current welterweight kingpin Leon Edwards.

Islam Makhachev thinks Leon Edwards got “lucky” with his title victory. 🧐

Full story: bit.ly/3KxfoQq https://t.co/jNx6BVHWxx

Hypothetically, then, if ‘Rocky’ can hold onto his title past his likely rematch with Usman – and Makhachev can quickly prove to be dominant over the rest of the lightweight division – then a champion vs. champion bout wouldn’t be out of the question.

If Makhachev could win that one, then he’d definitely be ahead of his mentor Khabib in the UFC’s overall pantheon.

#3. Islam Makhachev needs to headline a UFC show in Russia

Khabib Nurmagomedov was never able to headline a UFC event in his home country of Russia

Over the years, a number of UFC champions have been able to become far bigger stars with the fans by headlining events in their home town or country. Legendary welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, for instance, skyrocketed to fame by making a number of title defenses in Canada, while Anderson Silva and Jose Aldo both headlined a number of huge shows in Brazil.

While there were obviously some extenuating circumstances, Khabib Nurmagomedov never joined that group of fighters during his reign as UFC lightweight champion. In fact, throughout his octagon career, ‘The Eagle’ never fought in his native Russia.

Sure, it’s true that the UFC has only visited Russia three times anyway, and they aren’t likely to travel there any time soon while President Vladimir Putin continues his military invasion in Ukraine.

However, if Islam Makhachev can hold onto the lightweight crown for at least a few years – and if relations between Russia and the West become more cordial – there’s definitely the chance that the promotion could head there and have Makhachev headline a major event at home.

Right now, the chances of this seem slim, but then nobody would’ve expected the UFC to be able to visit places like China and Abu Dhabi at one point, either. If Makhachev can achieve this, then he could not only surpass Khabib, but he’d probably go down as the biggest Russian star in MMA history, too.

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#2. Islam Makhachev needs to embark on a heated and legendary rivalry with an opponent

Khabib Nurmagomedov's rivalry with Conor McGregor became the biggest in UFC history

While Khabib Nurmagomedov’s accomplishments during his tenure with the UFC were definitely impressive, the thing that really pushed him over the edge and into superstardom was his bitter rivalry with Conor McGregor.

Khabib became the biggest rival to ‘The Notorious’, even surpassing Nate Diaz in that regard. By the time the two men finally met in the octagon at UFC 229, it was hard to dispute that the feud had become the biggest in the promotion’s history.

OHHHHH MY KHABIB DROPS MCGREGOR!!!!

#UFC229 https://t.co/4rBF7QbRey

In the end, ‘The Eagle’ dispatched the Irishman with a fourth-round neck crank. While the bout garnered huge controversy after a post-fight brawl between both corners, it also drew more than two million buys on pay-per-view – a UFC record.

With that in mind, to match or surpass his mentor, Islam Makhachev probably needs to embark on a huge rivalry that captures the imagination of the UFC’s fans. After all, most of the promotion’s legends did this, from Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell to Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier.

Who could this rivalry come against? It’s hard to say, as right now, it feels like the lightweight division doesn’t have an antagonist like McGregor to face off against the new champion

However, it may only be a matter of time before someone breaks through. When they do, Makhachev ought to be ready to start a war in order to capitalise.

#1. Islam Makhachev needs to win more than 13 fights in a row in the octagon

Islam Makhachev only needs two more wins to equal Khabib Nurmagomedov's winning streak in the UFC

One thing that Khabib Nurmagomedov was able to achieve that Islam Makhachev will never be able to match is his unbeaten record. ‘The Eagle’ famously walked away from the UFC with an unbeaten 29-0 record in late 2020, while Makhachev already sports a defeat on his ledger as he was knocked out by Adriano Martins in 2015.

Khabib is 29-0 and was never knocked down or cut in a professional MMA contest.

You literally can't say that about any other UFC champion ever.

Is there anything Makhachev could do to even come close to Khabib in this regard? Surprisingly, there is.

Khabib’s 29-0 record remains one of the most impressive in UFC history, but in fact, just 13 of the Dagestani’s bouts came in the octagon, with the other 16 largely taking place on the Russian regional circuit.

With that in mind, if Makhachev could manage to put together more than 13 wins in a row against the world’s best fighters in the octagon, it’d be hard not to argue that he’d have surpassed his mentor.

Remarkably, the new lightweight kingpin isn’t actually too far off this. His victory over Charles Oliveira, which made him champion, was his eleventh in a row, meaning two more victories would tie Khabib’s run and one after that would surpass it.

At the end of the day, retiring unbeaten is all well and good, but more wins at the highest level would surely be more impactful – meaning there’s still a chance that Makhachev could retire with a more gaudy record than him mentor.