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Machado Garry’s victory over Belal Muhammad on Saturday might have earned him a shot at Makhachev
Alex PattleCombat Sports EditorTuesday 25 November 2025 10:13 GMTComments
CloseNext fight for Islam Makhachev: Potential contenders explored
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Islam Makhachev has responded to Ian Machado Garry’s impassioned callout after UFC Qatar, where the Irishman secured his biggest win yet.
On Saturday, Machado Garry defeated former welterweight champion Belal Muhammad on points, potentially setting up a fight with current champion Makhachev.
Although Machado Garry vowed to knock out Muhammad and failed to deliver on that promise, the 28-year-old put on a slick performance and used his time on the microphone to talk up a fight with Makhachev.
Now the Russian has responded, telling media: “Yeah, that will be interesting. He’s also a good fighter.
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“He’s on a good winning streak and he’s young. I think it’ll be interesting. We’ll see.
“He didn’t surprise me yesterday. If he surprised the UFC, then maybe he will be next.”
While Machado Garry’s win streak is actually just two, those victories have followed the sole defeat of his professional career: a narrow points loss to Shavkat Rakhmonov, who halted the Irishman’s 15-0 start as a pro.
open image in galleryIan Machado Garry (left) during his sole loss, a points defeat by Shavkat Rakhmonov (Getty Images)Since that defeat in December, Machado Garry has outpointed Carlos Prates and Muhammad, positioning himself near the top of the rankings. However, some fans still see Rakhmonov as the true No 1 contender.
Makhachev, 34, addressed the matter in his afore-mentioned interview, noting that Rakhmonov has not fought since beating Machado Garry due to injury issues.
“[He] hasn’t fought for over a year,” Makhachev said of the unbeaten Kazakh. “A contender can’t sit out for a year with injuries and then come fight for the belt.
“We said hello [in Qatar], he congratulated me. We just shook hands. If he recovers, and the UFC decides he’s next, why not?”
Rakhmonov, 31, was in Doha to support his teammate Asu Almabayev, while Makhachev was present to help coach his own teammate Tagir Ulanbekov. Almabayev won his bout with Alex Perez, while Ulanbekov came up short against Kyoji Horiguchi.
open image in galleryIslam Makhachev (right) during his title win against Jack Della Maddalena (Getty Images)UFC Qatar took place one week after UFC 322, where Makhachev dominated Jack Della Maddalena in the main event to win the welterweight title.
That decision win came six months after Makhachev vacated the lightweight belt, having successfully defended it a record four times.
In surpassing three successful title defences at 155lb, and in collecting a second UFC title, Makhachev has outdone his coach and childhood friend Khabib Nurmagomedov.
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