Islam Makhachev Is Ready to Replace Sean O’Malley in UFC 299, Manager Makes Massive Claim Despite Official Announcement From Dana White

Islam Makhachev may yet go down as one of if not the greatest fighters in UFC history. The lightweight champion is already the best pound-for-pound fighter in the promotion and is continuing to improve. The Dagestani defeated the featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski thanks to a devastating head kick that he unexpectedly pulled out of his arsenal.

The 32-year-old has also expressed his desire to challenge UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards for a chance to become a concurrent double champion, something not even his mentor and GOAT contender Khabib Nurmagomedov could achieve. And his manager revealed that one of the reasons for his greatness is his professionalism, which means he is always ready to fight even on short notice. But that was not all he revealed.

Islam Makhachev’s manager reveals he is ready to fight in March

Ali Abdelaziz was asked during the interview when the fans will get to see Islam Makhachev back in action. The manager revealed that Makhachev was originally supposed to fight at UFC 299 in March. However, this did not come to fruition and the promotion has booked bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley vs. Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera to headline the card. “The deal was, Islam you know, to fight March 9. And of course, the UFC have a headline already: Sean O’Malley,” Abdelaziz said.

The manager said that while the UFC had offered Makhachev a fight in February this year, it was turned down for being too close to his previous UFC 294 bout in October last year. “He’s the main event and it didn’t work out they said fight in February but it was too close to his (last) fight,” he added.

However, Abdelaziz did leave the door open that Makhachev would be willing to fight in March if Sean O’Malley was to pull out. The Egyptian pointed out that the champion was a consummate professional and remained in shape even when not in a fight camp.

“It is what it is, you know, he’s just gonna wait for Ramadan or maybe the UFC call tomorrow (and say) ‘O’Malley is out, we need Islam. Maybe you can fight March 9.’ Islam is always training, always in shape, he’s a professional… I never see anybody from Dagestan as more professional than Islam,” he added. And he even has an opponent in mind in case this happens.

Makhachev wants to fight Gaethje next

Abdelaziz also spoke about the fighter he thinks deserves to fight Makhachev for the lightweight title next, and it was another one of his clients: BMF title-holder Justin Gaethje. The manager pointed out that Gaethje was one of the most entertaining fighters in the promotion and would be an exciting match-up for the Dagestani.

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Even Makhachev himself has said recently that he would prefer to fight Gaethje as he had already defeated Charles Oliveira in their UFC 280 bout and was not in favor of fighting opponents he had already defeated. Who do you think Islam Makhachev should fight next?

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