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Islam Makhachev's manager recently came to his client's aid by using his mentor and friend Khabib Nurmagomedov as an example to dismiss Ilia Topuria's latest ducking claims. The Dagestani decided to pursue an opportunity to become a two-division champion rather than remain at 155 pounds.
UFC CEO Dana White officially announced that Makhachev had vacated his lightweight championship and would be challenging Jack Della Maddalena in his first welterweight title defense. As a result, a bout between Topuria and Charles Oliveira was booked for UFC 317 and will be contested for the vacant lightweight championship.
Topuria was critical of Makhachev as he claimed that Dagestani ducked him in favor of a welterweight move. While speaking to MMA Junkie's Mike Bohn, Makhachev's manager Ali Abdelaziz dismissed the claims and compared his client situation to what Nurmagomedov faced toward the end of his career.
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Abdelaziz mentioned that the pound-for-pound king is being criticized because he wants to move up to 170 pounds, whereas 'The Eagle' was criticized because he decided not to move up to 170 pounds:
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"When Khabib retired, people said Khabib ran because he didn't want to go to welterweight, right? Now Islam goes to welterweight, they say he run from lightweight. You can't win... I think Ilia should be very grateful to Islam. Islam vacated his title for him to become a champion. I think it's an honorable thing to do, the same thing he did. And Islam is not afraid of nobody... I think it's a statement for [Topuria] to make himself feel better."
Check out the full interview featuring Ali Abdelaziz's comments defending Islam Makhachev [6:35] below:
What did Ilia Topuria say about Islam Makhachev's welterweight move?
Ilia Topuria shared his immediate reaction to Islam Makhachev's move to welterweight and didn't hold back from making his feelings known.
After Dana White made the official announcement for UFC 317, Topuria posted a message to his X account saying that he will add another championship to his resume and implied Makhachev didn't want to fight him. He wrote:
"On June 28, another dream will come true. I'll be the champion of the lightweight division. Charles, my apologies in advance... I'm just fighting for my dreams. It's unfortunate that Makhachev ran away. 17-0."
Check out Ilia Topuria's post regarding UFC 317 and Islam Makhachev below:
