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Islam Makhachev and the entire MMA community are waiting for official confirmation on who his next lightweight title defense opponent will be. Although it is not yet known when that fight will take place, predictions for his next opponent have been circulating since the end of his last fight.
Among the most frequently mentioned names are Ilia Topuria, who is just entering the lightweight division, followed by Arman Tsarukyan, Charles Oliveira, and Justin Gaethje. The Topuria match would certainly be the most watched, while Tsarukyan was probably written off because he pulled out of an already scheduled match against Islam just days before the event. Former champion and analyst Daniel Cormier gave his subjective opinion on who Makhachev should choose.
“I think Justin Gaethje is the most logical choice for the next fight. If I were on Makhachev’s team, I would look for him because he is a big name in the sport and brings a lot of interest to the audience,” Cormier said on the “Funky and the Champ” podcast.
Certainly, former interim champion Gaethje would be the most realistic opponent choice and probably the biggest challenge for Islam, but it would be difficult for that match to sell enough PPV as a possible fight against Spaniard Ilia Topuria, who is also the featherweight champion.
Makhachev last defended his belt against Renato Moicano when the Brazilian stepped in to replace Tsaryukan. Journalists have been very curious about Islam's next opponent since then and have repeatedly asked Dana, who usually laughed and gave imprecise answers.
Former UFC champion Henry Cejudo put forward an interesting theory about the possible outcome - according to him, Khabib Nurmagomedov could play a key role in making the decision and preventing Topuria from getting an immediate title shot.
"I talked to Khabib, and he thinks it's unfair for Topuria to get a belt shot right away. Islam already gave Volkanovski a chance when he decided to move up a weight class," Cejudo told MMA Junkie.
Khabib reportedly stated that Topuria would have to defeat his first challenger before he gets a chance to face Makhachev. However, as we have become accustomed to over the past 30 years, UFC president Dana White will have the final say, and since he is looking at pure profit, Topuria is more likely to be the opponent.
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