The recently concluded UFC Austin shocked a large chunk of the MMA community. Arman Tsarukyan’s KO victory over Beneil Dariush in the main event made him the highlight of the event. The Russian expressed his desire to fight for the UFC lightweight gold in his in-octagon interview. Further, he also gave out a daunting warning for the current UFC lightweight champ, Islam Makhachev.
Well, a recent incident revealed that Tsarukyan’s words have already reached the Dagestani. ‘Ahalkalakets’ has fought Makhachev once in his UFC career. Fans may also remember that he had to taste defeat on that outing. However, UFC Austin his interview revealed that he was confident about the outcome being different this time.
But the current lightweight champ’s opinion stood in stark difference with his former rival, Tsarukyan. Khabib Nurmagomedov’s stablemate posted an update on his ‘X’ account that clarified his take on Tsarukyan’s challenge for him. However, he also included the names of three noted UFC lightweights Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje and Charles Oliveira in his tweet. Makhachev’s update read:
“Arman, Dustin, Justin, Charles they all good, they’re TOP 5 in the world, but none of them will get the belt, while I’m here. That’s it! @ufc @espnmma”
Arman, Dustin, Justin, Charles they all good, they’re TOP 5 in the world, but none of them will get the belt, while I’m here. That’s it! @ufc @espnmma
— Makhachev Islam (@MAKHACHEVMMA) December 6, 2023
He also tagged the UFC’s and ‘ESPNMMA’s’ official ‘X’ accounts in his update. It is quite understandable that he wants the UFC and fans to know he’s ready to fight all of them. But Makhachev is currently standing at a pretty interesting juncture. Fans may see him moving up a division for at least one of his future fights as well.
Islam Makhachev may fight as a Welterweight soon
The noted UFC welterweight, Colby ‘Chaos’ Covington is the primary reason behind this. In one of his interviews, Covington revealed that he would like to fight the current UFC lightweight champ, Makhachev for his first title defense.
Fans know that Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards is the current UFC welterweight king. However, Covington sees himself as a clear victor in his fight with ‘Rocky’ scheduled for the UFC 296 main event. It’s quite apparent that he already has sorted out his first UFC welterweight title defense rival. He just needs to claim the title now.
But, if Covington fails, Makhachev probably won’t be moving up in weight. In such a situation, the UFC will have two viable options for his next fight. A rematch with the famed Charles Oliveira, or providing Tsarukyan with his much-awaited title shot against his former opponent Makhachev.
In any case fans are likely to have a great match featuring the current lightweight champion.
