- Islam Makhachev thinks Arman Tsarukyan is using him for hype but has no problem facing him again
- The lightweight champ wants to fight before the year ends
Islam Makhachev shared his honest thoughts on Arman Tsarukyan and what is next for him following another successful title defense.
Arman could have it again
Speaking to reporters, including Red Corner MMA, Makhachev emphasized that Tsarukyan needs to always mention his name because he needs it for attention. For the reigning champ, he already beat “Ahalkalakets” in the past but would have no problem doing it again if Tsarukyan gets the next title shot.
“He just talks a lot,” Makhachev said. “He can’t get any attention through his fights, so he’s trying to do this by talking. He had his shot, I beat him once. I guess I’ll have to do it again.
Islam wants another one before the year ends
Makhachev wants to stay as active as he could this year. Though he couldn’t confirm if the UFC is on the same page, he remains firm about his plan to fight one more time before the year ends.
“I can’t tell you that yet. I don’t know. But I’ll be getting ready to fight at the end of the year,” Makhachev said.
Staph was never an issue
Conor McGregor insulted Makhachev by mocking the lightweight champ over his staph infection. As soon as people began buzzing about it, Makhachev came clean about having staph weeks before UFC 302 but it never affected his training camp, let alone his performance against Dustin Poirier.
“For the last couple of weeks before the [UFC 302] fight, it didn’t bother me at all. The weight cut was good, I had some really good final sparring sessions. So, I don’t think it took anything out of me. Maybe it just distracted me for a short while,” he admitted.
With McGregor edging closer and closer to his UFC return, Makhachev’s team is becoming more and more interested in a showdown with “Notorious.” In fact, Ali Abdelaziz even thinks McGregor is likely to get a crack at Makhachev if he beats Michael Chandler at UFC 303.
Watch Makhachev’s full interview below:
