Islam Makhachev finally is got what he asked for, and it is a shot at the welterweight title. While it may not be 100% in his terms, the fight between him and the current welterweight champion, Jack Della Maddalena, has been confirmed. Makhachev was previously the UFC’s lightweight champion, and his aspirations to become a double champion, was something that he has been very vocal about for a long time. <\/p>
The only reason why he did not move up earlier was because Belal Muhammad, his friend\/brother, was holding the title, and the two had made it clear that they had no intentions of going against one another. Now that Makhachev has vacated the lightweight belt and the division, he’s also facing a lot of criticism for the move since the potential mega fight between the Russian and Ilia Topuria will not be happening anytime soon. Many claim that Makhachev is “ducking,” the Georgian and fans and fighters have also questioned his friendship with Belal, as he wasted no time in moving up from his previous division without thinking about the repercussions for his friend. <\/p>