Islam Makhachev is the Pound-for-Pound number 1 in the world right now and there seems to be no one who can stop him. The Dagestani fighter has been tearing up the UFC for quite some time now following in the footsteps of his brother-like figure and fellow Dagestani fighter, Khabib Nurmagomedov, who is often considered not only the Greatest Lightweight Of All Time but also the undisputed GOAT of the UFC.
In the eyes of UFC enthusiasts, even after winning the Lightweight Championship and defending it 3 times, Islam Makhachev has still not surpassed Khabib Nurmagomedov’s legacy in the UFC. While the former would claim that Khabib will always remain the greatest no matter what due to the mutual respect they share, some would say that is soon about to change.
Yes, it is true that Islam Makhachev will never retire undefeated since he already has one loss on his MMA record of 26-1-0, he can achieve something else that Khabib never could, in fact, it is something that hasn’t been replicated in the past 14 years in the UFC. Khabib has a record of 29-0-0 in the UFC and he finished his career early when his last fight with Gaethje came after his father’s demise. But this is also the biggest argument that Khabib-haters bring up in the GOAT debate, “Khabib did not defend the belt for more than 3 fights.”
But guess what, that is exactly what Islam Makhachev will be doing the next time he steps into the Octagon. And that date could come in as early as January 2025. It was Khabib himself who confirmed this news in a recent interview with Ushatakya. ‘The Eagle’ stated, “UFC offered us a fight already, in January. We accepted it. UFC will announce very soon where it will take place and who will be Islam’s opponent. I will not make an announcement myself, but I can say that we are focused on January.”
It is safe to assume that Islam Makhachev’s next title defence will be at UFC 311 in January. And going purely based on what makes the most sense, the challenger would most likely be Arman Tsarukyan, whom Makhachev was slated to fight prior to his arm injury.
Anyhow, Islam Makhachev will be a big favourite to defend his title for the 4th time. Should he win, it would make him the first Lightweight in UFC history to have 4 title defences to his name. Since the inception of the 155 lb title in the UFC, nobody has successfully defended it 4 times. The closest was Khabib with 3 title defenses.
If Islam Makhachev does win, he will have accomplished the one thing that keeps Khabib from undeniably winning the GOAT debate. This would surely mean Islam Makhachev has surpassed Khabib Nurmagomedov right? What do you think? Let us know your opinion in the comments below.
