Islam Makhachev is definitely one of the ‘nice guys’ within the realm of MMA. In a sport that’s high in adrenaline as well as profanities, it is tough to find someone who remains humble and stoic like the current UFC lightweight champion. But what if you were given the chance to change that? At least, that’s what Chael Sonnen and Daniel Cormier would like to do.

In a recent edition of ESPN’s Good Guy / Bad Guy, Chael Sonnen revealed his wish to turn the Russian into a heel. He said, “I would like Islam as a heel. I insert for you heel Islam can move the needle. I think that Islam has that personality, but he’s too polite to do it.” However, doing so would go against his firm belief of not tarnishing the legacy left behind by the late Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov and Khabib Nurmagomedov. The Russians do not involve themselves with any sort of trash-talking or volatile behavior. A path followed by ‘The Eagle’ and now Makhachev.

Sonnen said, “He thinks perhaps he would be showing disrespect to the late great coach Nurmagomedov.” But how will the duo change his overall character? Well, the former UFC fighter pitched the idea that what if he and Sonnen get the chance to write the script for Islam Makhachev? Be his fantasy booker who would like to turn his character around. Turn the humble man into a cocky UFC lightweight champion who tells others about his prowess over them, the one who stays undefeated.

He said, “I think that’s the move. For Islam, he needs to get you and me to write him promos. We should write promos telling everyone how much better he is than the rest. I’d have him tell everybody that they don’t deserve to be in there with him and that he’s just going to lord over the division until he decides to retire.” He further added that he would make Makhachev drop the belt by vacating it, just for him to chase it again.

This, according to Cormier, would make Makhachev the bad guy that everyone loves. The Rowdy Roddy Piper in MMA that everyone would come to watch him lose. Booing him would be like positive chants to his ears and truly make him one of the biggest names to ever step foot in the Octagon. However, it seems like it would be nothing but a pipe dream. But do you know that Makhachev did actually lose his cool once?

Back when Islam Makhachev got into a heated faceoff

The UFC 302 pre-fight face-off turned really volatile when things became sour between Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier. The two competitors turned from respected opponents to cutthroat fighters during the staredown. Poirier started to talk trash with his opponent, where he spat out, “Go to sleep, motherf*cker,” to Makhachev.

This truly fumed the lightweight champion as his calm demeanor changed as he fired back at ‘The Diamond’ by yelling out, “Don’t say motherf*cker to me.” The two had to be stopped by the security before things turned to blows. However, Makhachev’s manager Ali Abdelaziz later revealed that there was no bad blood between the two opponents, and Poirier didn’t mean it in a malicious way.

In the end, the duo settled the feud with a round-five submission win for the Russian. And now he looks for his next opponent. What do you think? Could Makhachev be a great heel? Let us know in the comments.