Islam Makhachev reflects on bittersweet UFC 311 after his dominant win and Umar Nurmagomedov's loss: "There is good in everything"

UFC 311 turned out to be bittersweet for Islam Makhachev, as he successfully defended his belt, but his close friend and teammate, Umar Nurmagomedov, couldn’t secure UFC gold.

Makhachev etched his name in the history books by defending his lightweight strap for the fourth time in the main event of UFC 311, becoming the only 155-pound fighter to successfully defend the lightweight gold more than three times. Initially set to face Arman Tsarukyan, Makhachev's opponent changed at the last moment when the Armenian pulled out just a day before the event.

Instead, Makhachev faced Renato Moicano, and the Dagestani star made quick work of the Brazilian, submitting him in the first round via a D'arce choke.

On the other hand, Nurmagomedov suffered the first defeat of his career in his title fight against Merab Dvalishvili in the co-main event. In a hard-fought battle, the Georgian emerged victorious, winning via unanimous decision.

Meanwhile, another teammate of Makhachev and Nurmagomedov, Tagir Ulanbekov, secured a victory in the opening fight of UFC 311, defeating Clayton Carpenter by unanimous decision.

Makhachev, in his recent Instagram post, shared snaps from the event, reflecting on UFC 311 and penned down his feelings. He wrote:

“Mixed feelings from last night But there is good in everything for us. And we always say Alhamdulilah.” [Translated]

Check out Islam Makhachev’s Instagram post below:

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Islam Makhachev offers support after Umar Nurmagomedov’s first career loss at UFC 311

In the post-fight press conference following his victory over Renato Moicano at UFC 311, Makhachev was asked about Umar Nurmagomedov's loss. The pound-for-pound king offered words of support for his friend and claimed that the bantamweight fighter would become a UFC champion one day.

Makhachev said:

"Honestly, it was hard. I tried to warm up but I still watched the whole fight. Of course it made me a little bit sad, but Umar [was] looking good. Umar is still young, still hungry. He has time. Because he's still young, he made some mistakes in this fight. Merab did his job very well and they had a close fight. Umar did not take damage."

He continued:

"It's okay, he broke his arm also. 100% I think he will come back, because he's young, still hungry and he's gonna be UFC champion one day."

Check out Islam Makhachev’s comments below (5:45):