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All signs are pointing to Islam Makhachev defending his lightweight title against Ilia Topuria at UFC 317. According to Belal Muhammad, who is a training partner and friend of Makhachev's, the fight won't be close, as he expects complete domination from the reigning lightweight king.
'Remember the Name' shared his thoughts on the potential matchup in a recent sitdown with Submission Radio. Not only does Muhammad expect Makhachev to author a dominant performance against the Spaniard, he even predicted a fairly early finish when asked if Topuria is Makhachev's toughest challenge.
"No, I think he'll finish Topuria probably by, like, the second round. I think in the division, stylistically, I mean, honestly I see Islam just dominating all these guys. Obviously, Justin [Gaethje] always has that knockout chance, he always has that power. And then Arman [Tsarukyan], that first fight was so good, so close."
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Check out Belal Muhammad's thoughts on Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria (11:48):
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It's only sensible for Muhammad to predict a comfortable win for Makhachev, who has been next to unstoppable in the lightweight division. However, that isn't to say he hasn't struggled against certain opposition. Dustin Poirier, at UFC 302, proved far more resilient than expected, even having good moments of his own.
He was, though, ultimately submitted with one of the slickest D'Arce chokes in UFC history. Perhaps the most competitive fight of Makhachev's career was his war UFC 284 war with Alexander Volkanovski, who completely shattered the Dagestani grappler's aura of invincibility.
In particular, Makhachev seemed to struggle with the physicality of a shorter, stockier foe. Level changes for takedowns required a much wider range of movement for him, which telegraphed his takedown shots and enabled Volkanovski to preemptively stuff some of his shots.
Moreover, the Australian's shorter limbs allowed him to force standups more easily. Still, Makhachev won via unanimous decision in the end, but not without controversy.
Ilia Topuria believes the opposite will happen against Islam Makhachev
While Belal Muhammad believes Islam Makhachev will walk through Ilia Topuria, the former featherweight champion thinks differently. After the Dagestani star submitted Renato Moicano at UFC 311, 'La Leyenda' took to X with the following taunt:
"Islam, if I want to, I can finish you. If I want to, I can knock you out. I'll make it look easy. See you soon"
Now that Topuria has announced he has started a training camp, many are awaiting a bout announcement, and it is believed that the pair will face off at UFC 317.
