MMA fighter who came to train "2-3 years in Dagestan" with Islam Makhachev is a "spy" for Ilia Topuria, says the internet: "RIP to the informant"

Islam Makhachev and the young fighter who took up his offer to come and train in Dagestan have lately been making waves in the MMA community. The topic has received even more attention after reports that the youngster previously trained with Ilia Topuria, who's Makhachev's longtime rival. Fight fans have chimed in with their reactions to the same.

Heading into UFC 302 in June 2024, UFC lightweight champion Makhachev spoke to longtime teammate Daniel Cormier. During their conversation, Makhachev famously suggested that a young martial artist could tremendously benefit from training for "2-3 years [in] Dagestan." He proposed that one send their child to Dagestan and "forget" until they're well-trained.

Earlier this month, a video featuring Makhachev training and conversing with a young athlete -- believed to be from Spain -- piqued fan interest. Many fans jestingly pointed out that someone had finally taken up Makhachev's offer of coming to Dagestan and training for a few years.

Well, an influencer going by the name 'Brilliant Shamil' has posted another video, featuring Makhachev lightheartedly choking and tapping out the young training partner.

Fans soon weighed in on it, with many joking about how the fighter was probably a spy sent to collect intel from Islam Makhachev's camp and deliver it to the Georgian-Spaniard Ilia Topuria. One Instagram user and wrote:

"That's the penalty for spying"

Another netizen insinuated that the fighter wouldn't be able to last long training alongside Makhachev and others in the Dagestani fight camp:

"Not 2, 3 years, but I think only 2, 3 hours and FORGET"

Watch the video below:

Check out the screenshots of a few reactions below:

Screenshots of comments (Image courtesy: @kundilaev on Instagram)

The same video made waves on X as well. Many fans joined in on the spy narrative, albeit lightheartedly, and speculated about how it could affect a possible Islam Makhachev vs Ilia Topuria fight. An X user implied that the fighter had likely already relayed the requisite data to Topuria's camp:

"It's too late, we already collected the data"

Others joked that Makhachev was out-grappling and submitting him because he'd discovered that he was a spy. A commenter opined:

"he found out he was a SPYYYY"

Another netizen asserted:

"@Topuriailia RIP to the informant"

Check out the video below (via @ChampRDS on X):

Check out the screenshots of a few tweets below:

Screenshots of tweets (Image courtesy: @ChampRDS on Instagram)

---

Islam Makhachev vs. Ilia Topuria -- Is the dream fight on the cards in 2025?

Islam Makhachev's lone MMA defeat came early in his UFC career via KO against Adriano Martins. Since that defeat, way back in 2015, the Dagestani combatant has been unbeaten inside the octagon. He's also broken the record for the highest number of successful UFC lightweight title defenses, having clinched his fourth defense in January 2025.

On the other hand, Ilia Topuria has confirmed that he's vacating his UFC featherweight championship and moving up to the lightweight division. The title would be officially vacated when Alexander Volkanovski and Diego Lopes clash for it at UFC 314 in April. The undefeated Topuria is coming off a KO win over the legendary Max Holloway.

Presently, neither Islam Makhachev nor Ilia Topuria's respective next fights have been officially announced. Nevertheless, speculation abounded that the long-awaited lightweight grudge match could materialize soon, perhaps after Topuria fights and defeats a top-tier lightweight contender.