Paddy Pimblett believes that Islamic Makhachev should have been stuck in a lightweight, long enough to defeat Ilia Topria.
After months of speculation that Makhachev’s next 155-pound title defense would come against Topuria, the rug was drawn from fans of the fight. Instead, “Dagestani Destroyer” chose to move to welterweight with a lighter championship open, and in 170 he challenged the newly crowned king, Jack Della Madalena.
Since then, Makhachev has been subject to serious scrutiny, suggesting that many have high tiled it from the lightweight division to avoid a fight against the undefeated “Ermatador”. Even former three-time UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen proposed this, claiming that Makhachev did everything he could to “avoid that fight.”
Paddy Pimblett believes Makhachev missed the chance to beat Topuria and “JDM” in 2025
Pinblet offers his view on the situation and believes that Makhachev made a major mistake in moving to welterweight before welcoming Topulia to 155.
“If I were Muslim, I would have fought Topulia, defeated him, and fought Jack Della four months later.
Defeating both Topuria and Jack Della Maddalena in a year is undoubtedly an impressive feat, but there is much I don’t know about the decision to move over Makhachev.
Many speculate that Makhachev can no longer reduce the intense weight to 155. But the theory goes out the window when you consider that Macachiev remained light to fight Toporia.
Then there are rumours that Makhachev may have been stripped of his lightweight title for alleged doping violations, but no one has made any progress to demonstrate his claim.
Perhaps it will take a long time before you find the truth behind the decision, but if Makhachev defeats Della Maddalena and ends up collecting his second UFC title in many divisions, that really doesn’t matter.