Islam Makhachev

Islam Makhachev has long been living in the shadow of Khabib Nurmagomedov, but after Saturday's UFC 302 card in Newark, he may have actually surpassed his long-time friend and mentor.

Makhachev, the UFC lightweight champion and the promotion's No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter, got back to action in the card's main event. The Dagestani juggernaut was defending his belt against beloved action fighter Dustin Poirier, and despite being a gargantuan betting favorite heading into the fight, had to dig deep to finish things with a D'arce choke in the final round.

Makhachev is known for his wrestling, and he brandished that weapon early, blasting Poirier to the mat inside the first minute of the fight. He then spent the remainder of the round controlling his challenger on the ground, seemingly setting the stage for a dominant win.

But that's not how it happened.

Poirier came alive in the second, stopping three takedowns and landing some nice leg kicks and punches before finally being taken down in the final 10 seconds of the round.

The challenger continued to offer resistance in rounds three and four, stopping multiple takedowns and fighting his way back to his feet when he was grounded. He and Makhachev both had big successes on the feet, but in the fourth, Poirier took things up a notch, slicing the champion open with an elbow that looked like it could have a big impact on the remainder of the fight.

Heading into the final round, what once looked like it would be a blowout for Makhachev was suddenly a competitive fight, and the belt was still very much up for grabs. Poirier, who stated many times before the fight that it could be his last, looked to leave everything in the cage, but Makhachev had other ideas, and shot in on the challenger's legs. A few scrambles later, and they hit the ground, at which point Makhachev found the D'arce choke that would end things.

Poirier tapped, but could later be heard telling Makhachev he actually passed out during the choke.

"It's one of my favorite chokes," Makhachev said in his post-fight interview. "It doesn't matter if I'm tired or what happens, I can do this choke all night."

The win marked Makhachev's third defense of the lightweight title, after a pair of exciting victories over former featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski. It also strengthened what was already one of the best records in MMA. Unlike Nurmagomedov, who retired at 29-0, Makhachev has lost — but only once. Now 26-1 overall, he has won 14 straight fights in the Octagon, which actually puts him ahead of Nurmagomedov in terms of total UFC wins.

His resume is also comparable to Nurmagomedov's. Both champions spent the early phases of their UFC careers fighting relative nobodies, but finally started taking on top talent when they reached title contention. For Nurmagomedov, that meant beating Conor McGregor, Poirier, and Justin Gaethje. Makhachev, meanwhile, is now riding wins over Charles Oliveira, Volkanovski, and Poirier — a run that is just as good, if not better than his mentor's.

One way or the other, Makhachev is filling Nurmagomedov's big shoes, and the exciting thing is that, unlike the former champ, there's no reason to assume he'll retire in the middle of his prime.

Nurmagomedov retired at the peak of his athletic prowess, after the death of his father and coach Abdulmanap. Makhachev seems intent on doing the opposite and is looking to set up a title reign in a second division.

Shortly after his submission win over Poirier, he once again called for the opportunity to move up a division and fight for the welterweight title, which is currently in the possession of another pound-for-pound star in Leon Edwards.

"It's my dream," he said. "I want to fight for a second belt. I want to feel that energy again. When you defend your belt, it's not the same. I need a new one."

It remains to be seen if Makhachev gets his desired welterweight title shot. The champion, Edwards, is scheduled to defend his belt against Belal Muhammad at UFC 304 this summer, and the winner of that fight will have deserving contenders like Shavkat Rakhmonov and Jack Della Maddalena banging on their door.

It's not like Makhachev doesn't have contenders to handle at lightweight, either. The No. 1-ranked Arman Tsarukyan has pretty much been guaranteed a title fight in the division, and while Makhachev has beaten him once before, both men look like completely different fighters in 2024.

Suffice it to say that the lightweight champion has options for his next fight. Whatever the future holds, however, it's time to stop wondering if he'll live up to Nurmagomedov's legacy and accept that he's well on his way to surpassing it.

Islam Makhachev continued his reign over the UFC's lightweight division with a fifth-round submission win over Dustin Poirier to close out UFC 302.

Makhachev wasted no time in showing why he was a heavy favorite going into the fight. Poirier landed a clean punch that cut his eye, but he responded with a punch of his own and a takedown.

He then spent the majority of the opening frame threatening Poirier with multiple submissions.

The second wound was a much more competitive affair. Poirier stayed away from the cage, took the fight to the center of the ring and kept the fight upright.

Makhachev got his way again in the third round, however, Poirier had some moments too. Makhachev got The DIamond back onto the ground and nearly locked in an armbar but Poirier escaped and worked his way back to the feet.

The two had mutliple exchanges in an action-packed close to the round, sending the bout to the fourth round.

Poirier's run was destined to come to a disappointing conclusion, though. After getting Makhachev to the fifth and final round he put forth a strong last-ditch effort to get the finish but the champion had one more move left in the arsenal, sinking in a D'Arce choke to retain his championship.

The Dagestani grappler is carving out quite the resume in the lightweight division. With three successful title defenses, he's tied with B.J. Penn, Frankie Edgar, Benson Henderson and Khabib Nurmagomedov for the most in the lightweight division's history.

None of those greats have been able to defend it four times in a row. Makhachev's friend and coach, Nurmagomedov, retired before attempting a fourth defense.

If there's a threat to Makhachev stopping short of breaking the record, it's his own boredom. The 32-year-old is just about ready to try his hand at welterweight based on his comments ahead of the fight.

"Honestly, I think it's my opinion, (I'm) almost done with my division because who is going to be next? Just Arman (Tsarukyan)," he said, per Zac Pacleb of UFC.com. "I already beat (him), and, in my division, I don't have some interesting fight (or) too exciting fights for me."

A quick look at the UFC's lightweight rankings confirms Makhachev's assessment. Justin Gaethje and Mateusz Gamrot are the only two in the top five that he hasn't beaten and Gaethje just lost to Max Holloway.

While Makhachev's victory puts him in rare company, the loss for Poirier could signal the end of a fan favorite's career.

Poirier told Greg Rosenstein of NBC that he would seriously consider retirement if he loses to Makhachev citing his desire to prioritize his health and family.

Dustin Poirier expressed his interest in a fight with UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev in a social media post on Thursday.

"I want that belt," Poirier wrote in a post on X, tagging Makhachev as well as UFC president Dana White.

Poirier is fresh off an impressive victory against Benoît Saint-Denis at UFC 299 on March 9, securing a swift second-round knockout after losing two of his previous three fights.

After taking down Saint Denis, the 35-year-old now owns a record of 30-8 overall.

As for Makhachev, his previous bout was a rematch with Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294 on Oct. 21. He defended his title by knocking out Volkanovski with a left head kick in the opening round.

Makhachev told MMA Junkie on March 14 that he would be open to facing Poirier, although he doesn't believe that he deserves a shot at the title.

"I know Dustin does not deserve the title fight, but we don't have any option right now," Makhachev said. "Everybody is busy. I want to fight. I want to fight three times this year. I have to call out someone, and Poirier is free now. He showed an excellent performance and scored a beautiful knockout. He's free now, he's healthy, and I asked him to fight in June."

"He's beat a lot of top guys," he added. "He's a legend. A fight with him, it's going to be good for me – for the history, for everything."

The lightweight champion followed it up on Monday by calling out Poirier's defeats prior to his win at UFC 299, taunting him in a post on X.

If the fight occurs, Makhachev will be looking to defend his title against one of the sport's most notable figures while Poirier has his sights set on a return to the mountaintop.