Khabib Nurmagomedov is widely considered to be one of the greatest UFC fighters of all time… But could his protege Islam Makhachev be even better?
The Dagestani duo rose through the ranks together, with Makhachev waiting in the shadows as Nurmagomedov became lightweight champion and a major drawing star. And once the elder fighter decided to hang up his gloves, it took just a matter of months for his teammate to claim his old belt.
Makhachev won the title by defeating Charles Oliveira at UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi, before two bouts against featherweight great Alexander Volkanovski last year. He is now set to face Dustin Poirier at UFC 302 in a massive showdown that could signal the end of the American’s iconic career.
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Dustin Poirier names two areas where Islam Makhachev is better than Khabib Nurmagomedov
Ahead of their meeting in Newark next month, Poirier has admitted that Makhachev may be the toughest test of his career. He felt the strength of Nurmagomedov during a 2019 unification bout, where he lost by submission after almost landing a submission early on.
But he feels Makhachev may be better in a number of aspects of his game after watching him knock out Volkanovski in their last outing. “His submission game, Jiu-Jitsu wise, is a bit more versatile than Khabib’s was,” Poirier said of Makhachev during last night’s The MMA Hour.
“Khabib had some chokes that he did really well, but Islam’s put himself in bad positions, going for armbars, maybe he loses a position but he uses his wrestling to get it back. He’s a bit more of a threat Jiu-Jitsu wise in scrambles, and his striking is better than Khabib.”
Dustin Poirier has final chance at UFC gold against Islam Makhachev
After losing his latest effort at the lightweight belt against Charles Oliveira in 2021, questions emerged around Poirier’s chances at ever winning the undisputed title. He was once the interim champion, but couldn’t unify against Nurmagomedov.
However, he has launched yet another run at the gold with wins over Michael Chandler and Benoit Saint-Denis. And when Arman Tsarukyan was unable to make the six-week turnaround from UFC 300 he was handed one last shot at the big one as the headliner of UFC 302.
Asked on the Fight Bananas Live show if it might be his last fight, Poirier replied: “It could be, I haven’t made an official decision yet. But, it could be.
“I’ve said this over and over again, I still have a lot of tread left on the tires. I can beat these young guys, I just did it [against Benoit Saint-Denis]… It’s just like, how much do I want to give to this sport? Because you don’t ride for free.”