Tag: UFC 294

Islam Makhachev welcomes Colby Covington’s challenge, wants chance at second title after UFC 294

Islam Makhachev is eyeing the welterweight strap if he’s able to log a second 155-pound title defense at UFC 294 this month.

[autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] is eyeing the welterweight strap after UFC 294.

Lightweight champion Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) rematches Charles Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) in the Oct. 21 headliner at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

Just like he gave featherweight titleholder Alexander Volkanovski an opportunity to become dual-champ in his most recent fight at UFC 284 in February, Makhachev wants to be granted the same chance if he gets past Oliveira for a second time.

“I don’t know what the UFC has planned, but my dream fight is for the second belt,” Makhachev told ESPN. “Of course, I am under contract, so whatever the UFC says, I will fight, no problem. But (Leon) Edwards vs. Colby (Covington) – I really believe I can beat (the winner). I look at their skills and what they have as champion and I know my skills. It’s going to be a good fight.

“I’m not saying I’m going to beat them easy. It’s going to be a hard, tough fight against a big guy. But I believe I can finish those guys. I gave a chance to (Volkanovski), so they have to give me a chance, too. I gave a chance to a guy from another division to come to my weight and to try to take this belt, and he lost. I want my chance, too.”

Welterweight champion Edwards (20-3 MMA, 12-2 UFC) meets Covington (17-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) in the UFC 296 main event on Dec. 16 in Las Vegas. Makhachev sees them both as winnable matchups, but hopes Covington wins – simply because Covington called him out.

“I hope (Covington) wins, because I don’t know what Leon says about (fighting me),” Makhachev said. “I’ve never heard Leon say he wants this fight. But Colby wants it. That’s why I want Colby to win and we can meet one day.

“It would be a very good fight, he has good wrestling. It’s going to be U.S. wrestling vs. Dagestan wrestling. He’s a good fighter. He has good wrestling and good conditioning, but in my opinion, I stop his wrestling and land many good punches.”

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Michael Bisping advises Charles Oliveira not to ‘throw wild sh*t’ in Islam Makhachev rematch at UFC 294

Michael Bisping thinks Charles Oliveira needs a more calculated approach in his UFC 294 rematch with Islam Makhachev.

[autotag]Michael Bisping[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] needs a more calculated approach in his rematch vs. UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag].

Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) runs things back with Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) in the UFC 294 main event on Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. In their first title fight last October, Oliveira was submitted by Makhachev in the second round at UFC 280. Oliveira’s aggressive style paid dividends in his finishes over Michael Chandler, Dustin Poirier, Justin Gaethje, and Beneil Dariush, but Bisping says “Do Bronx” can’t employ the same strategy vs. Makhachev.

“Charles has to have a game plan,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “He can’t just go forward in a blaze of aggression. He can’t just be winging it. I mean, at the end of the day, when two fighters like that engage in just an all-out brawl, if Charles is doing that, it’s a coin toss, OK?

“It’s one shot can change everything. So you have got to have a game plan. Alright, granted as Mike Tyson said, ‘Everyone has a game plan until they get punched in the face.'”

Bisping also thinks Oliveira can’t be taking too many risks against a grappler the caliber of Makhachev.

“Well, he’s got to use a lot of straight shots,” Bisping continued. “He’s got to use a lot of punches. Yeah, you can throw kicks. Charles is very, very good at throwing kicks. Against a wrestler, usually I would say don’t throw a lot of kicks, don’t throw a lot of leg kicks because they’ll catch them, but that’s not really how Islam gets takedowns. He doesn’t rely on that. He’s that good of a wrestler he can force his own takedowns.

“He’s got to use a lot of jabs, and he’s got to use a lot of straight shots and early. Much to the dismay of Charles Oliveira, he’s got to circle, he’s got to be light on his feet, he’s got to be strategic, simple as that. He has to employ some form of strategy, and that strategy is avoid the clinch early, don’t take too many chances, and don’t throw wild sh*t like flying knees when you’re not even in range.”

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UFC champ Islam Makhachev says Charles Oliveira’s complaint to fight in Abu Dhabi ‘makes no sense’

UFC lightweight champ Islam Makhachev clarifies that he made no demands to rematch Charles Oliveira in Abu Dhabi.

UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] clarifies that he made no demands to rematch [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] in Abu Dhabi.

Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) will run things back with Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) in the UFC 294 headliner on Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Their first fight also took place in Abu Dhabi, where Makhachev submitted Oliveira to claim the vacant belt last October at UFC 280.

Oliveira recently said he doesn’t think it’s fair to have to fight Makhachev in Abu Dhabi again, but Makhachev reminded him that he traveled to enemy territory for his first title defense against Alexander Volkanovski in Perth, Australia.

“Charles, I asked to fight in US in the summer, but UFC has other plans, I am a UFC fighter like you, never set the conditions for the UFC and fought where they offered, my last fight took place in Australia at the challenger’s backyard, simple, everything you say makes no sense.”

Volkanovski gave Makhachev arguably the toughest test of his career but was ultimately outlasted after five rounds of a tightly contested affair. Meanwhile, former champion Oliveira earned another shot at Makhachev by snapping Beneil Dariush’s eight-fight winning streak with a first-round TKO at UFC 289 in June.

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Alexander Volkanovski: Islam Makhachev a better MMA grappler than Charles Oliveira, beats him in a jiu-jitsu match

Alexander Volkanovski has made a bold statement regarding Islam Makhachev’s ground skills ahead of the UFC 294 main event in Abu Dhabi.

[autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] has made a bold statement regarding [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag]’s ground skills.

Lightweight champion Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) will run things back with Charles Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) in the UFC 294 headliner, which takes place Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Makhachev dropped and submitted Oliveira in their first fight at UFC 280 last October, in what was a dominant performance. Featherweight champion Volkanovski gives Makhachev the advantage over the UFC’s all-time leader in submission wins on the ground, but not just if they grappled.

“Who I think is a better MMA grappler? I’m going to point to Islam,” Volkanovski said on his YouTube channel. “Jiu-jitsu, we’ll go to Charles. This is going to be pretty controversial: Even if they did a jiu-jitsu match, who do I think will win? I’d still say Islam.

“I think (Oliveira has) got cleaner, crisper sort of submissions and jiu-jitsu moves. But when it comes to actual grappling and control, and dictating where it all goes, I’ve got Islam all day.”

Volkanovski knows first hand how good Makhachev’s grappling is. Although Volkanovski was able to get back to his feet for the most part, he had a hard time dealing with Makhachev’s suffocating pressure throughout their lightweight title fight at UFC 284, where he was edged out in a decision loss.

He still expects Makhachev to be a hard fight for Oliveira.

“I think Charles needs to do a better job of getting back to his feet, pouring the pressure on that way, which could lead to openings, submissions, while he’s building himself back up,” Volkanovski said.

“As Islam is trying to catch him again, maybe leaving his neck vulnerable, then getting him sort of out of position there because on the bottom, you’re not going to get him out of position. Then on the feet is where Charles obviously needs to get Islam for his best bet of winning that fight.”

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Charles Oliveira on Islam Makhachev rematch in Abu Dhabi: ‘I don’t necessarily think it’s fair, but it’s the game’

Charles Oliveira admits he would have preferred rematching Islam Makhachev elsewhere, but he’ll be in Abu Dhabi for UFC 294.

[autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] admits he would have preferred rematching [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] elsewhere.

Former champion Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) will run things back with lightweight champion Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) in the UFC 294 headliner, which takes place Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Their first title fight took place less than a year ago in Abu Dhabi, where Makhachev ran through Oliveira with a second-round submission at UFC 280. Now, Oliveira will have to fight Makhachev again in Abu Dhabi.

“I don’t necessarily think it’s fair, but it’s the game,” Oliveira told My MMA News through an interpreter. “That’s where the champion is. He calls the shots. But I’m coming back for my belt, wherever that is.”

Oliveira earned a second shot at Makhachev after snapping Beneil Dariush’s eight-fight winning streak with a first-round TKO at UFC 289 in June. He was dubbed next in line for the title, but took a while to accept the rematch.

However, it turns out it was just a negotiation tactic. With the UFC returning to Oliveira’s city of Sao Paulo Brazil on Nov. 4, “Do Bronx” was just trying to fight there.

“With 12 years in the game, I just kind of learned how to play the game,” Oliveira said. “I knew that there was a UFC in Sao Paulo. I just wanted to shoot my shot and see if it would work, but here we are.”

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UFC free fight: Charles Oliveira puts an end to Beneil Dariush’s impressive win streak

Watch Charles Oliveira make quick work of Beneil Dariush.

[autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] only needed one win to get back into a championship fight.

The fan-favorite Brazilian stopped Beneil Dariush back at UFC 289 in June, ending an impressive winning streak from Dariush. Entering the co-main event bout unbeaten in his past eight bouts, Dariush’s run lasted almost four years. Oliveira stopped Dariush with strikes in the very first round of their contest.

You can watch the video of Oliveira’s win above.

Oliveira returns on Oct. 21 in the main event of UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi. He takes on Islam Makhachev, the man who took the lightweight belt away from him last October.

Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) has fought once since the Makhachev fight, that being the Dariush fight at UFC 289.

Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) has also only one fight since defeating Oliveira. He outpointed Alexander Volkanovski in a close decision back in February at UFC 284, completing his first title defense.

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UFC free fight: Khamzat Chimaev runs through Li Jingliang, gets first-round submission win

Watch hamzat Chimaev make quick work of Li Jingliang.

[autotag]Khamzat Chimaev[/autotag] has taken the UFC by storm, running through his opposition, and that includes Li Jingliang.

In October 2021, Chimaev fought Li Jingliang in a welterweight contest at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi. The fight lasted a little more than three minutes. Chimaev closed the distance, took down “The Leech,” got his back and submitted him with a rear-naked choke.

It was a dominant showing that got Chimaev a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.

You can watch the video of Chimaev’s third UFC fight in the video above.

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Chimaev returns to the cage Oct. 21 against Paulo Costa at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi. The bout marks his return to 185 pounds.

Chimaev hasn’t fought since September 2022, when he quickly submitted Kevin Holland in the first round of a 180-pound catchweight fight. Holland was a last-minute opponent switch when Chimaev’s big weight miss caused the changing of matchups.

Costa also hasn’t fought in more than a year. He most recently fought in August 2022, when he defeated Luke Rockhold in a wild Fight of the Night contest. Prior to that, he was on a two-fight skid.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 294.

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UFC free fight: Islam Makhachev edges Alexander Volkanovski in champ vs. champ showdown

Watch Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski go at it in a champ vs. champ superfight at UFC 284.

To many’s surprise, [autotag]Alexander Volkanovski[/autotag] gave [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] by far his toughest fight in recent memory.

Although successful in defending his UFC lightweight title, Makhachev had to go to great lengths to keep his belt, and even then, many people still think Volkanovski did enough to get the victory.

Back at UFC 284 in February, Makhachev and Volkanovski put on one of the best championship fights in UFC history. The two went toe to toe in a highly competitive matchup that went to the judges’ scorecards. In the end, Makhachev defeated Volkanovski in a unanimous decision by scores of 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46.

You can watch the replay of the fight in the video above.

Makhachev returns on Oct. 21 in the main event of UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi. He takes on Charles Oliveira, the man who Makhachev took the lightweight belt from, in a rematch.

Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) hasn’t fought since defeating Volkanovski in February. Prior to that, he had submitted Oliveira in October 2022 also in Abu Dhabi. Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) has also fought once since the Makhachev fight. In June, the Brazilian made quick work of top contender Beneil Dariush at UFC 289.

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UFC free fight: Islam Makhachev captures vacant belt with dominant submission of Charles Oliveira

Ahead of their title-fight rematch at UFC 294, watch Islam Makhachev submit Charles Oliveira to become lightweight champion.

[autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag] made it look easy against [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag].

At UFC 280 in October 2022 in Abu Dhabi, Makhachev faced Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title. In what was meant to be Makhachev’s toughest test to date, it was perhaps his best-career performance.

Makhachev hung with Oliveira on the feet, took him down, and even dropped him in Round 2, which led to the fight-ending sequence – an arm-triangle choke submission finish.

You can watch the video of the full fight above.

Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) and Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) will run things back in the UFC 294 headliner Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Makhachev made his first successful title defense in February when he outlasted featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284. Oliveira was able to rebound from his title loss to Makhachev with a first-round TKO of streaking contender Beneil Dariush at UFC 289 in June.

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Usman Nurmagomedov doesn’t see Charles Oliveira giving Islam Makhachev ‘a hard situation’ at UFC 294

Usman Nurmagomedov thinks Charles Oliveira will suffer the same fate in his title-fight rematch vs. Islam Makhachev.

[autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] thinks [autotag]Charles Oliveira[/autotag] will suffer the same fate in his title-fight rematch vs. [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag].

Lightweight champion Makhachev (24-1 MMA, 13-1 UFC) will run things back with Oliveira (34-9 MMA, 22-9 UFC) in the UFC 294 main event Oct. 21 at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

Makhachev ran through Oliveira en route to a second-round submission at UFC 280 last October. Oliveira has since rebounded with a first-round TKO of Beneil Dariush at UFC 289, but Makhachev’s training partner Nurmagomedov doesn’t think “Do Bronx” will be able to make the necessary adjustments to avenge his loss.

“I think it’s going to be the same thing,” Nurmagomedov told ESPN. “Of course, Charles Oliveira – maybe he’s going to fix some mistakes. This is a fight. Something can happen. But I know Islam is training very hard. He’s very smart. He can wrestle, strike and grapple, too. I don’t think Charles Oliveira can give him some hard situation.”

Nurmagomedov (17-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) will look to make his own lightweight title defense when he meets former champ Brent Primus (12-3 MMA, 10-3 BMMA) at Bellator 300 Oct. 7 at Pechanga Arena in San Diego.

“In the striking, I think I’m better than him,” Nurmagomedov said of Primus. “Wrestling, I’m better than him. Grappling, I think I’m not bad. I’m good. My grappling is, of course, not like Khabib or Islam high-level, but not bad. Even if you see my last fight with Benson Henderson, I take his back and I finish him. It will be a hard five rounds, and I will try to finish this guy every round.”

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