UFC Champ Islam Makhachev’s Brutal Wrist Workout Gives Fans Flashbacks of Artur Beterbiev

Islam Makhachev is no stranger to pushing himself in training. But when this video of him performing a brutal wrist-strengthening exercise surfaced, the comparisons to former undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev became imminent.

Beterbiev’s famous wrist workouts consist of switching between finger push-ups, knuckle push-ups, and other punishing variations—all designed to improve punching power.

Makhachev’s training, of course, comes with varied ambitions. He not only wants to improve on his striking but also strengthen his grip to have better control over his opponents during grappling and clinching.

Moves like the spinning Dustin Poirier’s leg to cause a takedown at UFC 302 aren’t possible without incredible strength in the wrists. Needless to say, upon watching him actively train them, fans were flabbergasted at how easy the UFC lightweight champion was making it look.

One fan simply compared it to the Russian boxer. “Beterbiev workout”, he said, keeping it short and to the point. Another asserted, “Artur Beterbiev makes it look easy,” acknowledging just how effortless the Russian powerhouse made it seem.

But the respect for Makhachev was just as strong. “Islam Makhachev and Artur Beterbiev are the only two athletes I’ve seen as of now that do this—crazy how much it helps with durability”, a UFC fan replied.

Some fans couldn’t help but gasp at the difficulty of the workout. “I just tried this and it’s way harder than it looks lol“, said one while another pointed out Beterbiev’s freakish ability.

“Beterbiev be doing these like normal pushups lol”, he scoffed. And, of course, there were those who made sure to remind everyone that Makhachev has been at this for a while: “Old clip. Islam’s been doing it ages ago!”

Meanwhile, as he does these workouts and they get posted either by him or fan accounts, Islam would do well to remember that fans aren’t the only ones looking at him train.

Former featherweight champion Ilia Topuria has officially made a transition to 155 lbs and is adamant about taking him own.

Topuria wants Makhachev or Oliveira

‘El Matador‘ is a one-man wrecking ball with ruthless KO power that allowed him to knock out Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway in 2024.

Now, with loftier ambitions to achieve, he hopes to take on Islam for his debut fight at 155 lbs. However, since Islam has declined a fight with yet another former featherweight, he also has another name on his mind, Charles Oliveira.

In an interview posted by Alvaro Comonero, the Spaniard explained his intentions and said, “All my training is focused on Islam or Charles, because I don’t see any other opponents… Neither of them seems to dare [to fight me].”

Calling both the fighters cowards, he added, “These are the symptoms of fear, we all know that, but it’s normal. I’d be scared too”.

Meanwhile, Oliveira has clarified that he only wants to fight for the title right now, having been in enough #1 contender fights over the last year or so. He’s open to fighting Topuria but not until there’s UFC gold resting on his shoulders.