It seems like unpredictability is following Dana White and Team Khabib lately. Islam Makhachev might have won UFC 311 and cemented his legacy once more but it was not against the opponent he expected. He was supposed to fight Arman Tsarukyan but just 24 hours earlier, he had an injury forcing him to pull out last minute. Even then the Dagestani did not falter and displayed a flawless win.

However, there is again a unique scenario that arises now. Since Tsarukyan needs to heal and Makhachev is sitting on the throne, who will challenge him next?  Will it be Charles Oliveira who has done his bidding or someone else? Team Khabib has answered.

Team Khabib gave an unexpected news for Makhachev’s next fight

There are a lot of takers for this game against Makhacehv. From Oliveira to Alexander Volkanovski and even Ilia Topuria, all the top dogs want a chance to fight the 27-fight winner. But the thing is, according to their manager Ali Abdelaziz, none of them are in the plan!

Championship Rounds gave this inside information and uploaded an X post by the Egyptian manager. Abdelaziz said, “ The UFC has a completely different plan for Islam which doesn’t include Oliveira, Arman, or Ilias. But it’s an unpredictable sport and you don’t know what could happen.”

So who do they have in mind? Let’s donne our Sherlock hats for a bit. We already know that ‘Do Bronx’ has swooped in to keep his name in the conversation of Makhachev’s next opponent. “It was a great fight. He’s the champion. He did what he had to do. But I’m next and he knows that. The lightweight champ is called Charles Oliveira. I’m ready for that,” Oliveira declared in his native Portuguese after UFC 311.

On top of that, in his first title defense, Makhachev had conquered UFC featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski in a difficult five-round bout at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia. Hold on, because there was a rematch too! They ran things back again at UFC 294 and the lightweight champ left no crumbs knocking out Volkanovski at 3:06 of the first round. And the third contender who challenged Makhachev was Topuria who sent an open threat to him after he won at UFC 311.

The UFC featherweight champion sent a challenge to the Russian and wrote on X. He said, “Islam, if I want to, I can finish you. If I want to, I can knock you out,” Topuria tweeted. “I’ll make it look easy. See you soon [winks].” But do you know who Makhachev wants to fight despite many takers? It’s none other than Tsarukyan.

Islam Makhachev gives an open challenge to Arman Tsarukyan

The Dagestani gave his verdict during a backstage interview at UFC 311. Islam Makhachev voiced his eagerness to face anyone including Tsarukyan in the near future. “No matter, no matter—make 155, let’s go. It’s not my choice, opponent, or what. We have Dana White, the big UFC team. You guys give me the job, that’s it,” he said, showing his willingness to revisit the fight.

He was unfazed despite the change in opponent in the last minute. “Long camp, I’m prepared for anyone. You know, this camp we trained so hard,” he said while exiting the Intuit Dome. Makhachev even hinted that Tsarukyan was ‘lucky’ because he did not have to face Makhachev when the latter was at his best.

And now the Dagestani is ready to face who he was supposed to. However, Dana White did not give ‘Ahalkalakets’ a green signal yet because he needs to heal. The boss was clear in his plan that Tsarukyan would be sent back to the“drawing board” and he would again have to start from square one to be on his way back to the title. As for Tsarukyan, he wants a five-rounder with ‘Do Bronx’ and earn a title shot with a win. So who might fight Makhachev next? Share your thoughts below.