"Dana White, let's finish this deal" - Ali Abdelaziz ready to lock in Islam Makhachev's next opponent after UFC Vegas 31 win
![Ali Abdelaziz urges Dana White to book Islam Makhachev's next fight [Image credit: @islam_makhachev via Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/07/10030-16265957770475-800.jpg?w=500)
Ali Abdelaziz wants Dana White to book Islam Makhachev with Tony Ferguson next.
After going through Thiago Moises in dominant fashion at UFC Vegas 31 on Saturday night, Islam Makhachev called out Rafael dos Anjos in his octagon interview.
Brett Okamoto later reported that the 29-year-old Dagestani showed interest in fighting Michael Chandler and Tony Ferguson as well for his next fight, and his manager took a liking to one of those 155-pounders.
Ali Abdelaziz tweeted at Tony Ferguson, asking for his 'location' and then urging the UFC president to 'finish the deal'.
"@danawhite also Let’s finish this deal," Abdelaziz tweeted.
At the UFC Vegas 31 post-fight press conference, John Morgan asked which among the three fighters he would pick if given a choice. Islam Makhachev went with Tony Ferguson, as his camp happens to have a history with 'El Cucuy'.
"If they're gonna give me a choice, let's do it with Tony [Ferguson], because we have good history with him. Khabib [Nurmagomedov] was supposed to fight with him five, six times. Let's finish this. I'm gonna finish this. I'm gonna show people around the world Tony is not on Khabib's level. People don't understand how Khabib have pressure. I cannot explain to you guys, but I think you know everything," Islam Makhachev said.
Islam Makhachev also said that he plans on fighting and finishing one more bout this year and becoming the 'Fighter of the Year'.
Islam Makhachev open to fighting Beneil Dariush
It seems like Islam Makhachev is hell-bent on proving his mettle against anyone that the UFC pits him against. In a post-fight interview with ESPN, Makhachev called out #4 lightweight Michael Chandler live on air, who earlier this year challenged Charles Oliveira for the UFC gold and came up short.
Michael Chandler was on ESPN desk duty for the event and responded to Makhachev's call out in a respectful and classy manner.
Makhachev was asked in the presser what he thought of the matchup with Beneil Dariush that Dana White suggested. The Dagestani said that he was definitely up for it as it would be a good fight, and given that he was ranked #9 and Dariush was placed at #3, it would be a huge step up for him.
"Beneil [Dariush] is a good fighter. If they give me Beneil, it's a good fight, you know? He's a nice guy, I know him a little bit. But he's number 3, he's a big step for me. He's tough, more than these other three guys," Makhachev said.
Catch the UFC Vegas 31 press conference below. Islam Makhachev arrives at the 23:20 mark.