Islam Makhachev was closely watching the welterweight title fight that took place on May 10 in Montreal.
The lightweight champion has openly stated his ambition to move up a division and compete for a second title, a possibility that wasn`t viable before UFC 315.
With Belal Muhammad`s recent loss of the belt to Jack Della Maddalena, both the lightweight and welterweight divisions are now poised for significant shifts in the near future.
Discussion has quickly turned to a potential fight between Della Maddalena and Makhachev, with the new champion potentially looking to avenge his teammate, Alexander Volkanovski.
Immediately following the conclusion of the main event, the Russian shared his reaction to the result on social media. However, Makhachev subsequently faced criticism for his posts.
Daniel Cormier dismisses Joaquin Buckley`s criticism of Islam Makhachev`s reaction
Daniel Cormier believes that the UFC lightweight champion should not be criticized for how he reacted to the main event of UFC 315.
It was widely understood that Islam Makhachev would not challenge for the welterweight title as long as Belal Muhammad held the belt, particularly given their history of training together.
Considering this, Jack Della Maddalena becoming the new champion is clearly the most beneficial outcome for the Russian in terms of pursuing his career goals.
Despite Makhachev posting encouraging words for Muhammad after his unsuccessful title defense, Joaquin Buckley publicly accused him of rooting against his friend.
@bullyb170 today were fighting for something bigger than UFC title, he’s fighting for all generation of people. Win or lose, don’t define his legacy.
Cormier, who has a close relationship with the lightweight champion from their time training side-by-side at AKA, argues that it is unfair to accuse Makhachev of wanting Muhammad`s downfall.
Buckley commented on this matter via social media, but `DC` dismissed his remarks as merely an attempt by `New Mansa` to generate attention and provoke a fight with a high-profile opponent.
“I don’t think Makhachev was praying for Belal to lose. I know the guy and I don’t think that’s in him to want to see one of his friends lose for himself to gain an opportunity. But, what Buckley is doing, from the trolling of Ian [Machado] Garry to now trying to target Islam Makhachev, it’s one of the only ways he’s truly going to find his way into those big fights that he wants so desperately.”
Daniel Cormier doubts Islam Makhachev can simultaneously hold two belts like Amanda Nunes did
Islam Makhachev has indicated that if he moves up to the welterweight division, he plans to keep his lightweight belt rather than vacate it.
Daniel Cormier responded to the Russian`s ambition of holding two titles concurrently by drawing a comparison to Amanda Nunes.
When `The Lioness` was a double champion, she successfully held and defended both the bantamweight and featherweight belts. However, Cormier notes that there was only a 10-pound difference between those divisions, and the featherweight division had fewer active contenders at the time.
Cormier believes that Makhachev will face a significantly more challenging task attempting to compete and defend titles across both the lightweight and welterweight divisions.
“That’s difficult. That’s hard. Especially once you get that belt at the next weight class, why do I have to cut the weight when I’m the champion here? It’s a very hard thing.”
