Dariush came back from Abu Dhabi with the win and a spot as one of the clear-cut top lightweights on the planet. He’s since turned his attention toward training for a new opponent and will have his eyes on what happens between Makhachev and Volkanovski at UFC 284.
“I believe Makhachev will win, but Volkanovski has the potential to do it. Stylistically, he has all the tools for the standup, but I don’t know his tools in the ground game. I don’t know how much he can improve in his camp, but it will be interesting to see how he handles Makhachev’s pressure. Right now, I’m leaning Makhachev, but I’m also just really excited to see such an interesting fight,” Dariush said. “Makhahcev is an unsolved puzzle and I want to solved it. But so is Volknaovski; no one has gotten close other than what Max (Holloway) did in the second fight.”
Regardless of that result, he’ll be looking to step into the Octagon with the most dangerous opponent possible.
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“If they have a close fight, I’d love to fight them both, but I do want to fight Oliveira and I do want to fight Poirier. Basically, I want to fight everyone,” Dariush laughed. “I really just want to compete with the best in the world, and whatever order I fight these guys is fine with me.
“I don’t have a ton of time left in my career, so this is my chance.”