“My mother and father worked their whole lives.” Important words from Makhachev after his 25th MMA victory

Islam Makhachev Since he was about 10 years old, he has been training with Khabib and resembles him not only in common knowledge and the UFC lightweight championship belt, but also in his numbers. Makhachev has 25 MMA victories, Khabib has 29. Islam has two belt defenses, Khabib has three. In the UFC, Makhachev had 14 victories, Khabib 13. Nurmagomedov defeated Conor McGregor, who had moved up from featherweight, and Makhachev defeated Alex Volkanovski. Khabib left the sport at 32, Makhachev will turn 32 on October 27.

Among his unique achievements, Khabib has not suffered a single defeat in MMA, and Islam is increasingly talking about becoming the first Russian UFC champion in two weight categories. To do this, you have to gain 7 kg and beat the one who leaves the cage with the belt on December 16. It will be either Leon Edwards or Colby Covington. So far, Makhachev has beaten the champion, who himself made weight, twice in 2023. Alex Volkanovski first lost to Islam by decision, and in Abu Dhabi he grabbed a leg very heavy on the head and was eliminated in the first round. The blow (on Volkanovski’s head) was such that after the press conference, Islam was limping on his left leg.

— Tell us how this knockout happened?

— The coach said I had good head shots and that I should hit them often. I know I’m a good kicker, and against small opponents like Volkanovski, you have to kick. I made him make a mistake: I threw a low kick, then to the body, then I kicked him in the head. That was our plan, we did it for several months, and in the locker room before the fight. Happy to beat him in the first round. If this had happened in the 4th or 5th, people would have said he took the fight on short notice and wasn’t ready for a five round championship fight. The Volkanovski story is over.

Some people underestimate my striking technique, but now they will respect it. I think I showed that I am the best fighter in the world.

—Didn’t you feel that he was weaker than in the first battle due to insufficient preparation?

“…Okay, it’s time to say it.” After the first fight (which took place in Australia on February 11), I didn’t want to reveal it because the fight itself was competitive and I didn’t want anyone to think I was giving up even after winning. There were a lot of things about Australia that didn’t suit me. First, I prepared for Oliveira for four months (the fight took place in October 2022), then I left the cage and started new training. In Volkanovski. My body had a hard time coping with this camp. In winter I prepared in the mountains, then I left directly for Australia in 20 days. Acclimatization was difficult and the battle itself took place early in the morning. I couldn’t recover, I couldn’t show up. I arrived at the arena and I had a feeling the fight was going to be tough and I was preparing myself for a tough fight. Someone will say that Volkanovski now entered the fight on short notice, but short notice is when you get tired in the third, fourth or fifth round. And in the first one, he had the strength, I took the clinch, and he just broke the clinch with his power.

—What else do you remember about the battle?

“I tried to translate it, but not in a way that necessarily went into two legs, I just wanted to capture and feel its power. He spent a lot of energy in the clinch, I felt it. I hit some good knees, some punches, it’s all part of the plan. Before the fight I thought that in the clinch I should work with him and then kick him, because he is small, but good for closing the distance. I believe I accomplished the plan 100%.

— Do you agree with Dana White that your next opponent is now Charles Oliveira?

“That’s not my job, Dana has to work on it.” I only sign the contract when they send it to me. If not Oliveira, then who? Gaethje? It’s not a good idea. Charles – good, but I already beat him. I don’t care if they say Charles, fine. They will tell Gaethje, I will beat him.

—You said you wanted to fight for the welterweight belt. Are you ready to go all out if you take the belt to a new weight room?

– In my weight, everyone has already killed each other. Drivers downed, everyone won against someone. Gaethje beat someone, Oliveira, now Poirier will win against someone, he will become a contender. There is some confusion. I would like to find a real competitor. But the second belt motivates me, and I feel that the competition is coming, there will be high-profile fights. Maybe I’ll stay there for a while, if possible.

— What advice would you give to Volkanovski?

“If his team is smart, they better take a break for a few months.” It’s not a submission or a judge’s decision, it’s a kick in the head.

—After the battle you called for peace, why was it important for you to say these words?

“Because throughout my training camp, I watched the news and saw how events were developing in Palestine, and even in the world in general. And I was very, very sad. Because the people of the Gaza Strip have nothing. They are constantly being bombed and killed. And they don’t kill terrorists, but ordinary people. What is happening there is beyond my understanding. And I wanted to say that we are united with the Palestinian people.

— Khabib wasn’t in the arena, maybe there was a message from him?

“I just got my hands on the phone now.” We corresponded, he is of course very happy, he would even like to be here, but Khabib is a man of his word. In any case, I am very grateful to him for being with me at the camp and helping me prepare for a whole month. And what he wrote – we did not have time to correspond for a long time, here are his messages: “What kind of bomb are you, Al-hamdu li-Llyah Jr., he wrote it clearly. ” Here are all his messages.

— You hugged Alex after the fight. What did they tell him?

“I expressed my respect to him.” Many people wanted this chance: Poirier agreed, Gamrot was ready, but Volkanovski accepted the fight on short notice and came here. I thanked him and his coaches. I am happy to end the fight like this, but I wish him good health, such defeats do not lead to good things.

—You have already fought in many places, where is it easier to fight?

– Yes, it is easier to fight in general in Moscow or St. Petersburg. When there were tournaments there, I trained at home, I did a camp at home, I came to fight. The UFC management wants tournaments in Abu Dhabi, that suits me too. Not so far from home, time zones don’t change much. When the whole arena supports you, everyone is on your side, it affects not only the fighter, but also the judges. With each blow, even if it misses, the entire audience reacts. I think it has an effect. I watched the replays of the fight from Australia, I noticed that there were such screams with every punch, even though he was missing, that you think, did I really miss something there?

—There was an episode in this fight where Volkanovski pushed you away from the gate, are you sure you will have enough power for the 77kg division if you move there?

— Volkanovski is quite powerful. I think he’s the most powerful guy in his division. That was my plan. When he turned me around… in any position, the clinch was advantageous to me, because he is smaller than me. You can see how many knees and other blows I hit him with. I feel good in this position. I held on tight, clinging to his arms. It was part of the battle plan. My plan was to hang it, feel it a bit, soften it and start working. As for moving to another weight and power category, we will add pitch, add weight and power will increase.

– It’s obvious that you are quite tired – can you imagine the next time you go to the gym and what kind of workout it will be?

— My leg hurts a little. I sit here and it hurts more and more. Now I don’t know when I’ll get to the gym, but there won’t be any long breaks and there never have been. The first training will be rugby and a little wrestling.

— You have reached the income level where you can say that you earn enough. Can you name the biggest purchase you made in the last year?

“I jumped over that bar a long time ago. I dreamed that my father and mother, who worked all their lives (father was a driver, mother worked in a cafe) every day from six in the morning until late in the evening, so that my brother and I n We didn’t need anything, we could just relax during the time they were working for us. I jumped over this barrier. But I don’t have any other goals, to buy something there. I don’t need anything, I have a house, a car, a family. Happiness is not about money, not all rich people are 100% happy.

Live broadcasts of mixed martial arts tournaments can be seen on and Match! Fighter”, as well as on the sites matchtv.ru and sportbox.ru.

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