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UFC 280: Makhachev Rises To The Top
Islam Makhachev (23-1) rose to to the ocassion on Saturday night as he defeated Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira (33-9) and became UFC’s Lightweight Champion of the world. To the layman, Makhachev’s rise to the top of the division and his recent #2 ranking on the UFC’s Pound-for-Pound list might be surprising but not to his Coach, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“The last couple of years I told you guys, Islam Makhachev is the best fighter, not [just] in Lightweight, He is the best pound-for-pound fighter right now.” Nurmagomedov told Daniel Cormier after the fight.
He followed up declaring a blockbuster fight against the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC, the current Featherweight Champion in Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski (25-1) who also sat ringside in the Etihad Arena. This declaration did not rattle Islam who quickly grabbed the mic and said “Let’s go, I am ready”.
The matchup should make UFC President Dana White smile as it will feature the possibility for either of these two fighters to reach the status of double-champion. Only a few of the UFC's most legendary fighters have ever reached this status before (Conor McGregor, Amanda Nunes, Daniel Cormier, and Henry Cejudo). With this win Makhachev extended his win streak to 11 and simultaneously took down Oliveira’s 11-win streak that had dated back to 2018. The new Lightweight champion had told us before that he would drag the Brazilian born Oliveira into “deep waters” back in September. The question had remained, how Makhachev would be able to submit the greatest submission artist in UFC history (16).
The short answer is Makhachev’s wrestling and grappling. When it came to Oliveira, his long reach had helped him become one of the most dangerous submission artists and strikers in the game. If he was taken to the ground, it was no problem. If anything, it was shown in his previous title defenses that he preferred to work on his back. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt could use his long reach to change guard and maneuver from danger on the ground.Once he had those long arms of his locked up in a submission there was no use but to tap, just ask two former contenders in, Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier.
Makhachev’s striking kept Oliveira guessing what was coming next. The constant pressure created by the Russian, broke down Oliveira and made it impossible to get into rhythm. In total Makhachev landed a total of 72 strikes compared to his opponents 25. These numbers are ridiculous when you realize that the fight only lasted two rounds just like Makhachev predicted. When you add the control time of 5:05 in favor of the new Lightweight champion, there was no question that this was pure domination.
By keeping the pressure on and keeping his body tight and small Makhachev was able to avoid any of Oliveira’s most dangerous weapons on the ground. He would finish him off with an arm triangle to force the tap. The long answer to Makhachev’s victory has a lot to do with his training over the years with former Lightweight champ, Khabib Nurmagomedov and his father the late Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. A dynasty seems to be brewing in the Nurmagomedov camp and the UFC should be on high alert. The title of double-champ might be in the works very soon for Islam Makhachev as he will face the current Featherweight Champion, Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski, at UFC 284 next year.
Written by: Isaac Gomez
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