"He is my neighbor" - Islam Makhachev on how he became friends with Hasbulla
Islam Makhachev has shed light upon how he became friends with Russian social media sensation Hasbulla Magomedov. The Dagestani MMA stalwart revealed that he’s known Hasbulla for more than ten years and that they’re neighbors.
Hasbulla Magomedov rose to prominence as a social media influencer over the past few years, primarily due to funny TikTok videos of him pretending to fight children. Dagestan native Hasbulla is known to be a huge MMA fan. In his videos, he often mimics MMA legend and fellow Dagestani Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Islam Makhachev, a childhood friend and longtime training partner of Khabib Nurmagomedov, has previously appeared with Hasbulla in his social media posts. Similarly, Nurmagomedov himself has also been seen with Hasbulla, who considers ‘The Eagle’ one of his idols.
During a recent interview with BT Sport, Islam Makhachev was questioned whether he’s heard that Hasbulla was coming to Abu Dhabi to attend the UFC 267 event. Makhachev responded by stating:
“Yeah. He’s gonna be on this fight.” Makhachev then responded to being asked how his friendship with Hasbulla came about. The UFC lightweight star noted, “He’s my neighbor. He was really very close with me. I know him like, more than 10 years.”
Makhachev was also asked if Hasbulla loves MMA, to which he replied by saying, “Yeah, he loves MMA. He loves, you know. Now, it’s his first time travel to, from Russia (to) somewhere. I talked with him yesterday. He said he very happy.” On being asked if Hasbulla is excited to come and support him, Makhachev added, “Yeah, of course. He’s gonna come. After today, now, in Abu Dhabi. He’s coming maybe after two days.”
You can watch Islam Makhachev’s interview in the video below:
Islam Makhachev and the shark tank that is the UFC lightweight division
The UFC lightweight division is widely regarded as one of the toughest weight classes in all of MMA. Islam Makhachev has earned widespread praise for amassing an eight-fight win streak in this stacked division. Makhachev aims to continue his winning ways and has his sights set on the UFC lightweight title that’s presently held by Charles Oliveira.
While Oliveira is set to defend his title against Dustin Poirier next, it’s believed that Islam Makhachev could very well find himself fighting for lightweight gold in 2022. That said, Makhachev first has to get past the ever-dangerous Dan Hooker.
The highly anticipated Makhachev vs. Hooker lightweight bout will take place at UFC 267, at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on October 30. Moreover, Hasbulla, on his part, has warned Hooker that Makhachev is coming to "smash" him at UFC 267.