Michael Chandler thinks the UFC 322 headliner falls in need of this man.
Islam Makhachev will try and further cement his legacy as an all-time great this Saturday, when he headlines UFC 322 in Recent York City.
After vacating the lightweight throne earlier this 12 months, Makhachev will challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight crown, because the Dagestani looks to affix the club of double champions on MMA’s biggest stage.
Along with adding more gold to his collection, Makhachev plans to re-establish himself because the promotion’s pound-for-pound king. But even when a victory achieves that, one UFC star still won’t be calling the previous lightweight champ essentially the most skillful fighter in the game.
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Michael Chandler names Ilia Topuria because the ‘most expert’ MMA fighter over Islam Makhachev
By moving up in weight to pursue a second title, Makhachev is following within the footsteps of Ilia Topuria. The Spaniard has emerged as a brand new rival within the Russian’s profession, as talk of the pair doing battle after Topuria succeeded Makhachev as champion at 155 kilos continues to grow.
Should that matchup reach the Octagon down the road, Michael Chandler thinks it would feature essentially the most talented fighter in all of MMA — nevertheless it is just not Makhachev.
“I believe Ilia Topuria is essentially the most expert guy in mixed martial arts on the planet,” Chandler said during an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show.
And even when naming a detailed second, ‘Iron’ still neglected to decide on the upcoming welterweight title challenger.
“Him [Topuria] and Alex Pereira are only absolute monsters, but I believe Ilia’s got the sting in that,” he added.
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Islam Makhachev named 4 UFC stars above Ilia Topuria in his P4P rankings
Makhachev evidently doesn’t agree with Chandler’s assessment of his lightweight successor.
After the previous three-time Bellator champion’s comments, the Dagestani gave a much different take when analyzing the present UFC P4P rankings.
Having put himself back in the highest spot, Makhachev also named three others before Topuria rounded out his top five.
“Back to primary. This week, we’ll change,” Makhachev told Adin Ross.
“Myself, [Alexandre] Pantoja, [Tom Aspinall], and [Alexander] Volkanovski, of course.
“That’s 4? And Topuria,” he added.