Russian UFC fighter Islam Makhachev retained the championship belt for the first time last weekend. RIA Novosti Sport has identified five options for the next fight, the heir to Khabib.

Makhachev was considered the clear favorite of the duel against Alexander Volkanovsky. However, the Australian gave the Russians the toughest challenge of his career. Whatever the outcome of the UFC 284 main event in Perth, the aftertaste was mixed.

The winner (the second number in the rating, regardless of weight categories) could not surpass the loser. Seems like an absolutely unreasonable decision of the promotion.

There is an exit. Give Volkanovski one more opportunity to pose with two belts and for Makhachov to win again”shortand be the best of the UFC.

(Obviously) the challenger fight will be officially announced very soon. Charles Oliveira will try to cover up the defeat against Islam and will meet Khabib Nurmagomedov’s successor again in the octagon. Beneil Dariush, rightly referred to as the UFC’s lightest welterweight player, will attempt his ninth consecutive win.

Volkanovski will likely have to fight interim featherweight champion Yair Rodriguez. Then Oliveira or Dariush will be the most obvious candidates for the leadership of the Islamic team and organization.

At the 286th UFC tournament held in London in March, former interim champion (Khabib’s last opponent) Justin Gaethje will try to deprive Azerbaijani Rafael Fiziev from a six-game winning streak. Is it worth meeting with the Russians, the winner of the joint main event of the evening in the O2 arena?

Fiziev – certainly because he will extend an impressive streak and fill the “file” with the loudest name in his career. Gaethje? The probability is slightly less as he went to fight “Ataman” after an early defeat in the title fight against Oliveira. But how do you know what the UFC will find in case of another great American show?

McGregor hasn’t fought in a year and a half and has had three early losses in his last four games. But who cares? “The infamous” constantly brings a lot of money. The title fight with Conor is an explosion of knowledge. Makhachev will not refuse such an easy opponent, and will count on an Irish “knock” and take risks.

That’s right, McGregor needs to beat Michael Chandler for this scenario. Otherwise, it will be difficult to explain why the “title holder” bought a fighter with three unsuccessful fights in a row.

We have already mentioned the second most important challenge of the event, which will take place in London on March 18. Now let’s talk about the main event of the night. UFC heavyweight champion Leon Edwards will reunite with Kamaru Usman and end the swanky trilogy.

This match will be watched closely not only by MMA fans, but also by Mahachev. After all, Islam has repeatedly admitted that it wants to rise to a new division for the second gold.

True, a fight between the two champions in 2023 is unlikely. But if the lightweight can never be a clear #1 contender, why not give the Russians the opportunity to join the elite club of double champions?

There are currently four:

There are three losers: