Javier Mendez thinks Kamaru Usman would be a great challenger for former lightweight titleholder Islam Makhachev.
The ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ delivered a vintage performance at UFC Atlanta, dominating Joaquin Buckley en route to a decisive unanimous decision victory. In the process, Usman snapped a three-fight losing skid and re-established himself as a legitimate contender to the welterweight world championship.
Now back in the win column, Usman has his sights set on one thing — getting his belt back. Of course, he’ll have to wait to see how things play out between reigning champion Jack Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev, but Usman already seems to have his fingers crossed that it’ll be the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ who comes out on top.
Sharing his take on their potential clash, Javier Mendez — the American Kickboxing Academy founder and trainer of both Khabib Nurmagomedov and Makhachev — believes it’s a fight that everyone would love to see, including himself.
“Usman was very impressive. He’s a challenge for sure for Islam,” Mendez said courtesy of Genting Casino, who offers the best live casinos. “I happen to think Usman’s the greatest welterweight of all time. So Usman is a big challenge for Islam if Islam wants that fight. Usman calling him out is great if that’s what Usman wants to do and if that’s what Islam wants to do in the future.”
Before talking about a fight with Kamaru Usman, Makhachev is focused only on JDM
But for now, Makhachev and his crew are focused on the task at hand — defeating JDM and adding a second belt to his collection.
“That’s a fantastic fight; they can both make money, and it’s not personal, so that’s good. But we have to get by Jack. We shouldn’t jump ahead of Jack; we have a very tough fight in front of us. We can’t assume we’re going to beat Jack, because that’s stupid. That guy’s very dangerous.
“But once we get by Jack, then we can see what Islam feels. But right now, I think the focus should be more on Jack.”
No official date has been announced for Della Maddalena’s first-ever 170-pound title defense against Makhachev, but when the time comes, there’s no doubt that Kamaru Usman will be chomping at the bit to face the winner.
