Following in his mentor’s footsteps Islam Makhachev defeated Dustin Poirier at UFC 302. Their June 1 fight went the distance with Makhachev securing a fifth-round win to add his name to an exclusive list. Even though he entered the contest as a favorite, Makhachev was made to work by Poirier and it took a stern demand from Khabib Nurmagomedov before the final round for the lightweight champion to stamp his authority and retain the title.

Makhachev was supposed to fight Arman Tsarukyan at UFC 308 Abu Dhabi PPV card in October. Regrettably, he had to withdraw from the fight because of an injured hand and a torn ligament. The Dagestani fighter’s coach confirmed that he would not be back in October. But he appeared for a Q&A session before the UFC on ABC 7 event in Abu Dhabi and addressed a few questions.

During the conversation, he spoke about his senior and neighbor Khabib Nurmagomedov and how ‘The Eagle’ gave him one specific piece of advice that helped him clinch victory against Dustin Poirier.

Makhachev was asked what were his thoughts and messages when he went back to his corner between the fourth and the fifth rounds.  Islam revealed, “I just asked Khabib what is the score. How many rounds did I win? He said three rounds you won but you have to win the last round. And I just said okay and I go, you know.”

Makhachev appeared in ascendency heading into the final round, but why was it important for him to finish the job in the final round? The fighter gave an explanation for this. He said, “I stand in my mind, I 100% won all three rounds. But some of the judges look how the fight is finished. The last round always, when you look great in the last round. Like when I have is the Volkanovski, the first fight he won the last round and lot of people talking you know. That’s why I am happy I finished Dustin in the last round nobody have question.”

Here Makhachev referenced his UFC 284 fight against Alexander Volkanovski in February 2023. Although Makhachev came out victorious via unanimous decision, the Australian more than held his ground and displayed why pound-for-pound he may be the best fighter out there. The final round saw Volkanovski strike a left hand and finish the fight in top position. While Makhachev’s win was fair, questions were raised over his dominance. However, the Dagestani fighter quelled any notions of weakness when he knocked out Volkanovski at UFC 294 in the first round.

Hence, to avoid a repeat of any doubts being raised over his win, he followed through on Khabib’s advice and made Poirier submit in the final round to retain the lightweight title. Until then, both fighters had exchanged heavy blows with Poirier landing a clean punch that cut Makhachev’s eye. However, the defending champion was back on top soon. The second round was a much closer affair with “The Diamond” avoiding having his back against the cage and taking the fight to the center to his advantage.

In the third round, Makhachev was again back to his best and nearly locked in an armbar but Poirier managed to escape. The round ended with a few solid exchanges. After taking the champion to the final round, Poirier appeared to be near the end of his line and that is when Khabib’s words to Islam worked wonders as he placed D’Arce choke to retain his title.

With the win, he registered his third successful title defense and joined B.J. Penn, Frankie Edgar, Benson Henderson, and Khabib Nurmagomedov for the most successful title defenses in the lightweight division’s history. And as we know now, Khabib had a key role to play in his win.

The duo has been together since childhood. Both of them are neighbors and learned the basics of martial arts from Nurmagomedov’s father. The dynamic is not only more than a decade old but also organic. So the only thing Khabib needed to tell him was the truth before he headed to the final round. 

Notably, Nurmagomedov had stepped back from coaching and was not in Makhachev’s corner following his win over Charles Oliveira for the UFC lightweight title on Oct. 22, 2022. He sat out both of Makhachev’s title defenses against Alexander Volkanovski before his return to ringside was announced for the fight against Poirier.

Makhachev will be eager to etch his name in the history books as he looks to defend his title four times in a row. Though his injury means, he will have to wait, he already has an opponent in mind for when he makes his return.

Islam Makhachev wants to get ‘Blessed’

Makhachev had plans to become a two-division champ and was eyeing the welterweight belt. However, following Muhammad Belal’s refusal to fight Makhachev, he had to change his plans a little.

Max Holloway is basking on his latest win against Justin Gaethje at UFC 300. The whole combat world reacted to the tantalizing victory, including Islam Makhachev.  During his Q&A session, the champ expressed his interest in fighting Holloway even though he has one specific condition.

During the press conference, he praised ‘Blessed’ and said, “Last fight is a great performance for him, you know, and he beat Gaethje. Knock him out, that’s right.”

However, the title shot is still a few fights away for Holloway, and Makhachev pointed out that the BMF would first need to defeat Ilia Topuria. He said, “If he beat Topuria, but this is a hard match for him. If he beats him and UFC wants this match, let’s go. Let’s do it. Because this guy has experience in lightweight and he beat guys couple of tough guys. That’s why. Why not?” 

This is a surprise coming from Makhachev because he was not interested in fighting Holloway in the past. He said that the fighter was trying to win in a weight class above his featherweight category, which was not feasible. Now, Holloway is all set to clash against Topuria at UFC 308, so the clash with Makhachev might be a reality if he is healed by that time.

Do you think Makhachev can defeat Holloway? Let us know in the comments below!