Khabib Nurmagomedov is confident that his childhood friend and teammate Islam Makhachev will put Charles Oliveira away in a potential clash for the lightweight title. Oliveira is currently the top contender. He is guaranteed the next title shot after picking up a first-round submission win over Justin Gaethje at UFC 274 this past weekend.
Nurmagomedov has been advocating for Makhachev to get to fight Oliveira for the title next. In a recently shared story on his Instagram, 'The Eagle' predicted the outcome of a potential fight between 'Do Bronx' and Makhachev. According to the now-retired undefeated fighter, Makhachev will finish Oliveira inside three rounds.
No matter how good a fighter Oliveira is, Nurmagomedov believes Makhachev is better than him:
"My prediction is a maximum three rounds, no matter how good he is, Islam is better than him. Just remember these words."
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Islam Makhachev claims Charles Oliveira's jiu-jitsu will be ineffective against him
Islam Makhachev believes Charles Oliveira is "scared" to face him inside the octagon and that's the reason he's recently called out the likes of Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz. The Dagestani fighter pointed out that Diaz hasn't won a fight in a long time and it doesn't make sense for Oliveira to fight him next.
McGregor is 1-3 in his last four fights in the lightweight division and it can well be argued that he doesn't deserve to fight for the title next. The Irishman is also yet to completely recover from the leg injury he suffered last year and his return date is unknown.
Islam Makhachev is currently undefeated in his last 10 fights whereas Charles Oliveira is on an 11-fight win streak. If the two are indeed booked to fight for the title next, it will be a mouthwatering prospect for fans across the globe. The Russian fighter has claimed that Oliveira's jiu-jitsu will be ineffective against him and that's why the 32-year-old is reluctant to fight him:
"@CharlesDoBronxs it’s funny you calling out Nate who hasn’t won a fight in years and same time saying I have to earn something…just say it straight that you scared to lose., your jiu jitsu won’t work in our fight and you know that," Makhachev wrote on Twitter.