UFC Middleweight Champion Does Not Take Islam Makhachev Seriously
UFC middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis isn’t taking seriously the thought of Islam Makhachev potentially moving up and challenging for his title. Du Plessis and Makhachev are two of the UFC’s best top pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
Most recently, Makhachev defended his lightweight title at UFC 311, and du Plessis is set to face Sean Strickland in a highly-anticipated championship rematch at UFC 312 next month. After successfully defending the belt in a quick finish over Renato Moicano, the lightweight champion is running out of potential new, fresh challenges in the lightweight division.
Interestingly, he’s long hinted at a move up in weight for a pursuit at becoming a two-weight world champion, an accolade that his mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov never accomplished. After defeating Moicano at UFC 311, Makhachev hinted at potentially becoming a ‘triple champ’, earning titles at welterweight and middleweight. It would be an astounding accomplishment that no one has ever tallied in UFC history.
What did Dricus du Plessis say?
During a recent interview with Fox Sports Australia, the middleweight champion responded to Makhachev’s comments about challenging for the UFC middleweight belt. He said:
“He trains with 185ers in his gym, but there is only one world champion. So kudos to him – but it doesn’t really matter because I’ll overpower him in any situation. I know he walks around heavy, but I walk around heavy. He’s a big lightweight, I’m a big middleweight.There’s a big difference there.”
Islam Makhachev’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, has repeatedly claimed that the lightweight champion would dethrone du Plessis if they were ever booked to fight. An obstacle standing in the way of Makhachev’s planned move up in weight is his teammate Belal Muhammad, who holds the welterweight belt and has publically refused to face Makhachev in a champion vs. champion matchup.
As of this writing, Islam Makhachev hasn’t responded to du Plessis’s claims, and he appears focused on at least one more lightweight title defense. A potential rematch with Charles Oliveira is an option for his next title defence, or even a fight against Arman Tsarukyan following Tsarukyan’s last-second withdrawal from UFC 311.
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