“We’ll go to war,” Islam Makhachev calls out Justin Gaethje for a title eliminator fight


“We’ll go to war,” Islam Makhachev calls out Justin Gaethje for a title eliminator fight

Islam Makhachev calls out Justin Gaethje

Islam Makhachev is tired of all the talking and wants to fight Justin Gaethje before he gets to be the next title contender.

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Islam Makhachev and Justin Gaethje have been going back and forth to prove which one of them makes a better case for being the next title contender in the lightweight division. Islam is coming off a nine-fight win streak and is looking for a shot at the title. The fighter headlined his first event and fought his first-ranked opponent in the top 10 in 2021.

Gaethje on the other hand is coming off an amazing victory against Michael Chandler at UFC 268 in Madison Square Garden. The fighter was challenged for the lightweight title in 2020 against Khabib Nurmagomedov who is also vouching for Islam as the next title contender.

After a lot of arguments online, Islam has personally called out ‘The Highlight’ for a title eliminator fight. The winner gets to contend for the belt. Islam wrote, “So we’ll go to war,” on his Twitter posting a picture of him and Gaethje. Both Justin and Islam have the same manager Ali Abdelaziz which makes things interesting. Islam also called out UFC President Dana White at UFC 267 demanding a title shot.

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Justin Gaethje asks Islam Makhachev to fight a top 5 fighter

Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler UFC 268
Gaethje beating Chandler at UFC 268

Though Islam has managed to put up an impressive record, the Dagestani has not fought anyone from the top five rankings. Justin in a recent episode of the UFC Unfiltered podcast pointed this out. Beneil Dariush, who is another top-ranked fighter in the lightweight division is also a worthy contender for the title.

“Do your f*cking job, fight these guys, and Beneil Dariush is right here. And I like the dude, he’s my friend so you know I’m just going to jump over this man and expect to get a title shot when the No. 3 guy is Beneil Dariush. Handle that. That has to be handled,” said Gaethje in the latest episode.

In defense of Islam, the fighter claims that the top-ranked fighters have been avoiding him ever since he managed to put up a commendable winning streak. Islam was initially scheduled to fight former champion Rafael Dos Anjos but due to an injury, Dan Hooker came in as a replacement to fight Makhachev at UFC 267.

Who do you think deserves the next title shot?

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