Islam Makhachev Vacates Before Welterweight Move?
MMAFighting recently spoke to Charles Oliveira’s manager and trainer Diego Lima. During the interview, Lima reacted to Islam Makhachev’s desire to chase the welterweight gold. If Makhachev pursues that goal, then Lima suggests a title vacancy at lightweight.
“If Makhachev goes up? Then he loses the belt,” Lima told MMA Fighting. “It’s like [Ilia] Topuria. I think the UFC will ask him to choose. If he says ‘I’ll fight’ [at 170], then they have to create an interim. I can’t put a whole division on hold. Personally, I think it’s absurd to hold an entire division.”
Lima noted he would hope that the division moves forward right away if Makhachev does indeed make the trip to welterweight.
“When an athlete goes up, he has to either drop his belt or create an interim. When a fighter starts to take too long thinking what he will do, then it’s time to create an interim. The division must move. Fighters fight a lot to get to the belt, and when they get there, they want to sit on the belt. It shouldn’t be like that, man.”
For now, many are wondering about Makhachev’s next lightweight title defense. While Ilia Topuria vacated the 145-pound gold to move up, Makhachev doesn’t believe “El Matador” deserves a title shot until he defeats a top-ranked lightweight. UFC CEO Dana White has remained mum on what the current plans might be.
