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Islam Makhachev's coach recently voiced his opinion on his upcoming title defense against Dustin Poirier at UFC 302. According to him, there's just one thing that can prevent Makhachev from outboxing Poirier.
In the post-fight press conference of UFC 300, promotional frontman Dana White revealed that Makhachev would defend his lightweight belt against Poirier. The two will lock horns on June 1 in the main event of UFC 302. The pay-per-view event will take place in Newark, New Jersey.
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Former UFC lightweight champion and Makhachev's close friend Khabib Nurmagomedov, who is documenting the reigning UFC lightweight champion's training, recently posted a video on his YouTube channel.
In the video, the Dagestani's coach Magomedgadzhi Bagandov discussed his fight against Poirier. Bagandov stated that Makhachev needs to be careful during the fight if he wants to outclass Poirier.
''Islam doesn’t just hold his own against [Dustin]; if he doesn’t engage recklessly, Islam surpasses him.''
Bagandov added:
''Even if you put wrestling aside, in my opinion, Islam can outbox him in pure boxing and in Muay Thai. There are no aspects in which Islam lags behind.”
Check out Magomedgadzhi Bagandov's comments below (3:57):
This all transpired after Arman Tsarukyan defeated Charles Oliveira via split decision at UFC 300. Shortly after getting his hand raised, Tsarukyan was offered a shot at the lightweight title, but he declined because he wanted to be fully ready for the occasion. Poirier eventually got the call and agreed to fight Makhachev.
Makhachev will make his third defense of the title at UFC 302 after defeating Oliveira to capture the title at UFC 280 in Oct. 2022. His most recent victory was a first-round knockout against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294 last year.
Meanwhile, Poirier's last octagon appearance came at UFC 299, where he defeated Benoit Saint-Danis via second-round TKO.
Islam Makhachev praises Dustin Poirier ahead of UFC 302 clash
Before their fight, Islam Makhachev stated that Dustin Poirier would not be able to choke him out with a guillotine on the Good Guy/Bad Guy podcast, hosted by Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen. Following the interview, many felt that Dagestani fighter was undervaluing Poirier's abilities.
However, Makhachev recently complimented Poirier's style in an interview with Sport24 (via Championship Rounds) and underlined the considerable work he has put into his training camp to counter Poirier's guillotine chokes.
''Yes, I gave my neck a lot in training. You need to find yourself in the positions that your opponent is in so that it doesn't come as a surprise to you in the fight. The media made a big joke out of this that I was joking about his guillotines. No, I'm telling the truth that I think he has a pretty good guillotine."
Check out Islam Makhachev's comments below:
