"I've never found him interesting"- Chael Sonnen describes how he felt about Islam Makhachev

Islam Makhachev did not always capture the imagination of Chael Sonnen, but that has changed since his recent run through the lightweight division. On a recent episode of Beyond the Fight, Sonnen spoke about his shifting sentiments on Makhachev.

While discussing the current No.4-ranked 155-pounder in the UFC, Sonnen said:

"I've never found him interesting. I never brought that to you. That's a rude thing to say. I never did say it, but I'm sharing with you how I felt. I did not want to see him against [Charles] Oliveira. I didn't want to see him against Oliveira, because I thought he [would roll] through Oliveira. Which should be more reason that I would want to see it."

Sonnen continued:

"That would mean that he's the rightful champion... You have a part to do to become a No.1-contender, and it's not becoming 15-1. It is to get the mandate of the masses... He's getting interesting. Every time he talks, it's something clever. Every time he talks, it's something insightful."

Listen to Chael Sonnen's full comments in the video below:

Makhachev cut his teeth on circuits like Tsumada FC, Pro FC, M1 Challenge, and Siberian Fighting Championship before transitioning to the octagon.

He made his UFC debut by besting Leo Kuntz vis second-round rear-naked choke at UFC 187 in May 2015. Although he lost his sophomore UFC bout via first-round knockout to Adriano Martins at UFC 192 in October 2015, Makhachev has not tasted defeat in his mixed martial arts career since that juncture.

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Islam Makhachev's pursuit of gold

Islam Makhachev is riding a ten-fight winning streak into a vacant title fight against a former titleholder who holds an eleven-fight winning streak: Charles Oliveira. The two collide in the pay-per-view main event of UFC 280 on October 22 from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The tension is mounting, and the banter is building up even though this fight is months away.

Islam Makhachev has collected consecutive wins over Chris Wade, Nik Lentz, Gleison Tibau, Kajan Johnson, Arman Tsarukyan, Davi Ramos, Drew Dober, Thiago Moises, Dan Hooker, and Bobby Green to punch his ticket to a title bid. He has back-to-back first-round finishes, four first-round finishes in his current win-streak, and six stoppages overall in his last ten fights.

Islam Makhachev will look to live up to the lofty expectations surrounding him and cement himself as lineal UFC lightweight world champion like his mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov did before hm.

Check out this video detailing the relationship between Makhachev and Nurmagomedov below: