'Big' John McCarthy previews Islam Makhachev vs. Charles Oliveira

Islam Makhachev is set to have his first crack at the lightweight title when he faces Charles Oliveira at UFC 280. While Makhachev has performed great en route to his title shot, former UFC referee and current analyst John McCarthy isn't sold yet on the No.4-ranked lightweight.

Speaking on his podcast, Weighing In, McCarthy compared Makhachev to his close friend and training partner, Khabib Nurmagomedov:

"He's not Khabib... And the one thing that he's really not Khabib is up here [motions to head]. That's the difference when it comes to this [fighting] because all the things that have happened and all the things that they want to talk about and all the things 'Oh, he's been set up for this' and all that stuff - he's a great fighter, but this [Oliveira] is the first truly great fighter he's taking on."

McCarthy would then break down Makhachev's previous fights, noting the flaws of each of his opponents. While Makhachev's performances were impressive, his opponents were not the cream of the lightweight division:

"There's a difference when you get to the top echelon. It all comes down to... that confidence. Right now, Islam has confidence and he should, but when things don't go his way, we're gonna see exactly who Islam Makhachev is because not everything's gonna go his way in this fight and Charles is a different beast."

Watch John McCarthy discuss Islam Makhachev below (starting at the 4:47 mark):

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Islam Makhachev discusses coach Khabib Nurmagomedov

Khabib Nurmagomedov is widely regarded as the greatest lightweight in UFC history. Now retired, Nurmagomedov's focus is on coaching and training fighters such as Makhachev, his close friend and former training partner. The No.4-ranked lightweight recently opened up on the struggles of having the UFC Hall of Famer as a coach.

Speaking with Adam Catterall of BT Sport, Makhachev stated:

"Sometimes, I am angry because he's not training now and push us so hard. I told the other coach 'Hey, this guy not control' because if we did sparring or wrestling - I remember when we're training, we did sparring, grappling... wrestling and then finished [the training]... but always he have some exercise after this training."

Watch Islam Makhachev discuss Khabib Nurmagomedov as a coach below (starting at the 7:37 mark):