Exclusive: Merab Dvalishvili's coach gets honest about Islam Makhachev's chances of success at welterweight

Islam Makhachev will soon be relieved of his UFC lightweight title as he moves up in pursuit of welterweight gold. The decision drew the attention of John Wood, one of Merab Dvalishvili's coaches at Syndicate MMA. He spoke about the Dagestani star's move in an exclusive Sportskeeda interview with James Lynch.

While Wood recognized that Makhachev is a large lightweight, that size advantage will be nonexistent at welterweight. He did, though, acknowledge that the easier weight cut could refresh Makhachev and even lead to him being a better fighter as a welterweight. Unfortunately, there are still drawbacks. Wood said:

"We gotta see Islam at 170. It might be one of those things where he goes up and because he's not having one of those crazy weight cuts, he's even better and is stronger. He's a huge, huge lightweight, so I think he's gonna be a decent-sized welterweight. But you always have that factor. He might feel better, he might be better, but now he's gotta fight bigger guys that are used to fighting that size of a man and not being dominated."

Check out John Wood's thoughts on Islam Makhachev's welterweight move below (10:49):

Makhachev, though, is confident that he will claim welterweight gold from the division's newly crowned champion, Jack Della Maddalena. The matchup, though, leaves former 170-pound champion Belal Muhammad in a difficult position. He has been averse to fighting Makhachev due to their friendship.

Furthermore, both men are training partners. If Makhachev captures the belt from Della Maddalena, it would be a fight that Muhammad has never been keen on. However, he recently expressed his commitment to becoming champion again, which could lead to an interesting match if Makhachev wins.

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Islam Makhachev struggled to make weight at lightweight

Islam Makhachev has never missed weight in his career, but his lightweight run was not without its difficult weight cuts. UFC 284, in particular, marked what appeared to be his toughest weight cut to date. He was in tears on the scale, and Australia provided him with a much shorter rehydration window.

Check out Islam Makhachev's UFC 284 weight cut below:

Many have pointed to this being the reason behind his performance against Alexander Volkanovski the first time. The Dagestani wrestler has always been regarded as physically strong to a freakish degree, but he struggled with Volkanovski's physicality on fight night, despite ultimately winning.