Michael Bisping thinks Islam Makhachev should aim even higher.
Makhachev holds the record for most lightweight title defenses with four, and he has defended the welterweight title twice. He’ll face the winner of the interim title fight between Carlos Prates and Michael Morales next. On his YouTube channel, Bisping said a win there should earn Makhachev a run at a third division.
He says he’s almost done. One of his last fights. So say he has this one, let’s say he beats the winner of Prates and Morales. So then he’s got two defenses at welterweight, four defenses at lightweight, that moving up to 185 and trying to become the triple champ? I like the sound of that.
And if anyone deserves it, it is Islam Makhachev. Remember, Alex Pereira was just granted that opportunity to go up to heavyweight and fight Ciryl Gane.
Makhachev recently posted that his next fight “is one of the last in my career.”
He turned 35 in October and has won 17 straight, most recently beating Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330.
Bisping liked the idea of Makhachev facing middleweight champion Sean Strickland.
And if Sean Strickland is still the champion, that would be a good matchup. I’m not saying he beats Sean, Khamzat [Chimaev] couldn’t beat Sean, but Islam wouldn’t get tired at 185, because that’s what Khamzat did.
Bisping also defended Makhachev’s decision to sit out while Prates and Morales fight each other, comparing it to Bruce Lee’s “art of fighting without fighting” in Enter the Dragon.
That’s kind of what Islam Makhachev is doing here. He’s allowing them to fight each other, so it’s the art of fighting without fighting. The man has earned the right to do that. He does have the ability and has earned the right to pick and choose his opponents and take a little bit of time.
