Islam Makhachev achieved the dream of his life when he earned his stripes and captured the UFC lightweight championship against Charles Oliveira at UFC 281. The Russian had fulfilled his potential. Along with the triumph comes the pressure to maintain your position and sit atop the throne. The 31-year-old now faces the most arduous stint of his martial arts career as he looks to fend off those eyeing his kingdom.
While his skillset and technique have entrenched themselves within the sports fans, the obvious question that persists in everyone’s minds is, just how strong is the lightweight king?
Makhachev’s former foe, Bobby Green, who was recently back from a suspension had quite some intriguing things to say about Makhachev prior to his fight with Drew Dober.
Green had stated that he had come across footage of the 31-year-old disclosing that he was offered vitamins and other medications growing up in Russia. Green hinted at the fact that Makhachev felt inhumanely strong in their contest.
Evidently, it aided him in his growth into manhood.
Sean O’Malley passes his insights!
Since the arrival of USADA into martial arts, the sport has never been better. The agency helps in establishing that all athletes remain clean, so as to ensure that they don’t have an unfair advantage over their competitors in a sport where the stakes are life and death.
On the latest episode of his podcast the ‘TimboSugarshow‘, O’Malley discussed the noise surrounding the statements made by Bobby Green.
Sean O’Malley said:
“Did you see Bobby saying Islam was so fu**ing strong and felt something like he’s never felt before? And then he said he was watching an interview from long ago where Islam got in trouble with something with USADA, and Islam was saying when he grew up, they would just give him supplements. In Russia, they just give all their athletes supplements. They don’t know what the f*** they’re taking. 13, 14, 15. Maybe that’s why he feels so f****ing strong.”
His co-host and mentor, Tim Welch did agree with O’Malley’s verdict but had his own wealth of knowledge to share on the subject.
Welch stated-
“I won’t be surprised but like anyone who grapples for their whole life..Holy f***. They’re just so fu**ing strong dude cos they’re so used to it.”
O’Malley was suspended by USADA for six months, due to violating their anti-doping policy. ‘Suga’ has always denied those accusations and stood firmly in the belief that he has not done anything wrong.
While O’Malley may have a point, it’s well worth noting that Welch’s analogy and knowledge of the subject apply to the topic. Those who have committed themselves to the art of wrestling and grappling have strengthened and conditioned their body extensively.
Also read: Sean Strickland Says There Is No Difference Between UFC Fighters and Adult Movie Stars
The cases of doping in MMA!
Despite the introduction of USADA in Mixed martial arts, the sport has seen a number of fighters still sticking to these means to gain an unfair advantage. TJ Dillashaw, Jon Jones, and certain other athletes will forever have an asterisk against their resumes as they have been caught.
Although Islam Makhacev has been suspended for a similar matter, the lightweight champion has not faced any serious repercussions. And considering the incident occurred over half a decade ago, the issue is swept under the carpet by now.
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