Makhachev has decided on his next opponent after Poirier

The champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in lightweight weight, Russian Islam Makhachev, has decided on his next opponent after Dustin Poirier. Makhachev’s manager Rizvan Magomedov said this in an interview with TASS.

According to him, a native of Dagestan plans to fight with Russian-Armenian fighter Arman Tsarukyan. “Islam will defend himself in a fight against Poirier, and then we will have a fight with Tsarukyan. We must admit that the opponent deserved this fight, he got to the first line of the lightweight rankings. For now, we have these two fights on the horizon, and then we’ll watch,” said the manager of the UFC champion. Magomedov added that the fight between Makhachev and Tsarukyan could take place this year in Abu Dhabi or New York.

In his last fight, Makhachev defeated Australian Alex Volkanovski by knockout and defended the UFC lightweight champion title for the second time in his career. The Russian was recognized as the best fighter of the organization in 2023. On June 1, Makhachev will defend his title again in a fight against Poirier at UFC 302 in the USA.

Tsarukyan defeated the Brazilian Charles Oliveira in his last fight and thanks to this he received the right to fight with Makhachev. Tsarukyan is ranked first in the UFC lightweight rankings. Makhachev is in first place in the non-weight category rankings.