Dustin Poirier had one of his best performances against a young and hungry contender in Benoit Saint-Denis at UFC 299. His performance has made him the ripest crop to pick for the UFC lightweight champion when he makes his return inside the octagon. Makhachev and his manager have even gone on to congratulate Poirier on his victory.

The tweets were mentioned by the former UFC welterweight champion/former PFP no.1 fighter, Kamaru Usman, and the former two-divisional UFC champion and Olympic Gold medalist winner, Henry Cejudo on their Pound4Pound podcast. The lightweight champion seems to be in a very grateful mood as of late, as he acknowledged their reference to his tweet and gave them a pretty heartfelt shout-out.

Islam Makhachev pays his respect to Henry Cejudo and Kamaru Usman

Islam Makhachev has been out of competition as he is currently fasting for Ramadan but looks to be eyeing a return as soon as June against Dustin Poirier as per his and his manager’s tweets. However, he looks to make this fight on good terms as Makhachev reposted a clip from the Pound4Pound podcast on his Instagram story with the caption, “Two pfp kings talking about real king”, paying his respect to Usman, Cejudo, and Poirier.

However, suppose Makhachev’s team is looking to set a fight against “The Diamond”. In that case, it places the winner of the Charles Oliveira and Arman Tsarukyan who are fighting in the UFC 300 event for the no.1 contender fight.

Justin Gaethje is also a fighter who will be defending his BMF title against the former UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway at the historic event. And a lot of people believe that “The Highlight” should be next for Makhachev’s title. So where is Makhachev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz’ mind for Islam Makhachev’s return?

Also Read: Khamzat Chimaev Confirms He’s Returning for a Title Run In 2024, Despite Serious Health Update After UFC 294 Injury Against Kamaru Usman

Ali Abdelaziz hints at Dustin Poirier being Makhachev’s Next Opponent

During a moment in the fight week of UFC 299, Ali Abdelaziz hinted at his plans for setting up a fight between Dustin Poirier and Islam Makhachev, as he was heard asking the former interim champ if he wanted to fight for the belt. Poirier winning his fight against Benoit Saint-Denis just made things easier for Makhachev’s manager to possibly make the fight come to fruition.

After Poirier’s win, Abdelaziz took to Twitter to congratulate “The Diamond.” In the tweet, he wrote, “Dustin Poirier took a huge risk tonight and came out on top and looked amazing. Dustin vs (Islam Makhachev) in June especially since everyone else has fights. If the UFC is good with this then Islam would be game.”

Who do you think that Makhachev should fight next in the division? Let us know your picks in the comments section below.

Also Read: UFC Update: Paulo Costa vs. Kamaru Usman Fight Would Make Dana White “Happy”