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Islam Makhachev is preparing to defend his lightweight title against former opponent Arman Tsarukyan. The pair are set to clash in the main event of UFC 311 on Jan. 18 in Los Angeles, and given the competitive nature of their fight in 2019, the title rematch has fans brimming with anticipation.
The lightweight king is in fine form ahead of his latest battle, having successfully defended his throne against Alexander Volkanovski and Dustin Poirier in his previous two bouts, winning both via stoppage.
He has finished seven out of his last eight opponents. But the Dagestani recently shared some unexpected praise for his opponent's skillset during an interview with Shakiel Mahjouri.
The MMA journalist asked Makhachev to share what he felt was his biggest advantage over 'Akhalkalakets'. He said this:
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"He doesn't have any weaknesses. But if I want to see his weakness, I have to [dig] very deep. Arman has everything, that's why he is the real contender, number one in our division right now. I pushed myself very hard for the last three months for this fight because I know I have a real contender who wants to take my belt. I don't want to give him any chance."
Check out Islam Makhachev's comments below (2:35):
Arman Tsarukyan believes he can KO Islam Makhachev at UFC 311
Arman Tsarukyan and Islam Makhachev faced off at UFC Fight Night 149 in 2019 in an immensely competitive clash. The Dagestani fighter saw his hand raised, winning via unanimous decision.
Given the elite grappling skillsets possessed by both lightweights, their first encounter saw several high-level scrambles and wrestling sequences. However, the Georgian-born Armenian secured only one of his twelve takedown attempts, compared to Makhachev, who secured four of his nine takedown attempts.
The title challenger was recently interviewed by Kevin Iole ahead of UFC 311, where he was asked if he felt that successfully landing one takedown on the champion would be enough to win their upcoming fight.
Tsarukyan said this:
"Maybe I don't need even one takedown. Maybe I need just one good hook and that's it... Yeah, [my hands] are my ten times [better than they were in our first fight]."
He added:
"I did a lot of work on my boxing in this camp, I believe my hands are way stronger than they were."
Check out Tsarukyan's comments ahead of Islam Makhachev fight below (4:00):
