“The ONE belt motivates him” – Islam Makhachev says Saygid Izagakhmaev is determined to be ONE world champion

Saygid Izagakhmaev is destined to become ONE world champion, at least that’s what his teammate and UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev believes.

Makhachev was present when Izagakhmaev defeated former ONE lightweight world champion Shinya Aoki at ONE 163 and saw firsthand just how determined his fellow Dagestani is to claim the top prize in the promotion.

Speaking to ONE Championship, Makhachev stated his case for Izagakhmaev’s bid for a world title shot:

“First, Saygid was very well prepared for this fight. Second, the ONE belt motivates him. It’s his goal, and I do not think anyone can stop him. I think a fight for a belt with the champion will be especially good.”

Saygid Izagakhmaev is undefeated in three appearances in the circle, and his latest outing may be his most impressive yet. The Russian powerhouse barely needed 90 seconds to take care of business against a ranked fighter in the division, and a former world champion at that. As a result, he moved up one spot higher in the latest ONE Championship rankings update.

If he keeps this up, it’s only a matter of time before reigning lightweight king Christian Lee shares the stage with him in a world title bout.

---

Saygid Izagakhmaev doesn't appreciate being overlooked by Christian Lee

The buzz generated by Islam Makchachev’s attendance as a cornerman for Saygid Izagakhmaev was too loud for Christian Lee not to notice.

Following his victory over Kiamrian Abbasov to become a two-division world champion, ‘The Warrior’ claimed he would be open to throw down with his UFC counterpart if the opportunity presents itself. During the post-fight interviews, Lee said:

“Let's see it, let's do a cross-promotional event. The lightweight world champion from UFC gets the lightweight world champion from ONE Championship. We'll see who's the real best lightweight in the world.”

A few hours later, Saygid Izagakhmaev claimed a victory of his own and had the opportunity to share his thoughts on Lee’s proposal to fight Makhachev. Izagakhmaev responded by saying the lightweight king should worry about what’s going on in his own backyard instead. He said:

“I think Islam [Makhachev] has [Alexander] Volkanovski and Christian [Lee] has me. He needs to focus on me and there’s no reason for him to think about fighting Islam.”

While a cross-promotional match may be too far away from reality, Izagakhmaev’s rise is very much real. Needless to say, a clash between the Russian powerhouse and the newly-crowned two-division world champion will certainly be exciting.

At this point, it’s almost a question of “when” rather than “if" they will meet in the circle.