Despite brutal loss at UFC 300, Islam Makhachev calls Justin Gaethje ‘dream fight’

Islam Makhachev reveals his dream fight in the UFC's lightweight division.

Despite brutal loss at UFC 300, Islam Makhachev calls Justin Gaethje ‘dream fight’

Justin Gaethje is Islam Makhachev's dream opponent (Image via: IMAGO)

Islam Makhachev had four potential opponents at UFC 300. However, none of those four won’t fight Makhachev next. That slot went to Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier, fresh off a knockout victory over Benoit Saint-Denis.

Max Holloway and Arman Tsarukyan were victorious at UFC 300. However, Holloway’s focus remains on the featherweight division. On the other hand, Tsarukyan was not interested in a quick turnaround. Nonetheless, neither Holloway nor Tsarukyan is a dream matchup for Makhachev, as revealed in an interview with TMZ.

Dustin [Poirier] is a good opponent because [Charles] Oliveira and Arman [Tsarukyan]I beat these guys already. My dream fight for this division, I think it's [Justin] Gaethje.
Islam Makhachev via TMZ
YouTube video

Unfortunately for Makhachev, Justin Gaethje suffered a brutal defeat at UFC 300 against Max Holloway. Moreover, he is now on an extended lay-off to recover. Interestingly, Javier Mendez, the head coach of Makhachev, had also called Gaethje the most stylistically difficult test for the Russian.

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Even though Gaethje is on an extended lay-off, Makhachev could get a chance to fight the Highlight. However, that would require Gaethje to get a signature victory on his return. After all, Poirier got a title shot after his KO of Saint-Denis, even though he lost to Gaethje via KO the fight before.

Islam Makhachev on fight with Dustin Poirier

Islam Makhachev’s upcoming fight is in the main event of UFC 302 against Dustin Poirier. Makhachev is a sizeable underdog for the fight, mainly due to Poirier’s deficiency with grapplers and wrestlers. Nonetheless, Poirier has a puncher’s chance, as he is one of the best boxers in the UFC.

Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier
Islam Makhachev and Dustin Poirier (via Imago)

Even though Makhachev has been dismissive of the chances of Poirier, he is not taking the fight against the Diamond lightly. Moreover, in his interview with TMZ, Makhachev spoke highly of Poirier. He even labeled Poirier as a legend of the sport and the most experienced fighter he would face inside the octagon.

Funnily enough, Dustin Poirier has jokingly insinuated that he would jump for a guillotine if the opportunity arises. For context, Poirier has never finished an opponent via guillotine but has tried and failed multiple times. He even did it in his recent fight against Benoit Saint-Denis.

Moreover, when Poirier fought Khabib Nurmagomedov, he lost via rear naked choke submission. The finish came after he tried to finish Nurmagomedov via guillotine. Makhachev jokingly revealed in his interview with TMZ that he prepared well to thwart the guillotine choke attempts from Poirier.

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