It appears that Islam Makhachev is following in the footsteps of Khabib Nurmagomedov in more ways than one.
Although he still has to prove it when he takes on Charles Oliveira at UFC 280, many are looking at Makhachev as the next king of the lightweight division, with most of that hype coming from the man who has helped train him, former champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. Both fighters have long been training the American Kickboxing Academy, working alongside the likes of Daniel Cormier, Luke Rockhold, and many more elite fighters.
Islam Makhachev Roasts Daniel Cormier
One of the staples of Khabib’s time in the sport, was his budding bromance with Daniel Cormier, with the two routinely being seen messing around with one another, and the former lightweight champion regularly mocking the former light heavyweight and heavyweight champion for his weight. It would appear that this is a tradition that Islam Makhachev looks to continue.
While doing media ahead of his UFC 280 lightweight title fight with Charles Oliveira, the Dagestani challenger was doing an interview with Shak MMA, when the subject came up of Cormier’s most recent trial run as a referee in the WWE. Here, he absolutely roasted DC, mocking him for the way he looked in the trademark striped referee outfit.
“Look at this fat guy. He cannot compete any more, he’s a referee right now. He’s a smart guy, you know. He doesn’t have to be in good shape to come back if he just wants to be a referee. Do some easy stuff,” Makhachev said. “No more (weight) cut, he wants to eat all day, burgers, chips. This guy’s so smart.”
These were some hilarious comments from Islam Makhachev, and they clearly come from a place of caring about Daniel Cormier. Time will tell if he is able to capture UFC gold, but even if that is not the case we can sure expect some more comedic gold between these two in the future.
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