Islam Makhachev's victory over Charles Oliveira was much tougher to attain due to pressure of carrying on Dagestani legacy, says Daniel Cormier

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier believes that the pressure of being the favorite might have made Islam Makhachev's victory over Charles Oliveira at UFC 280 very hard to attain.

In a recent video on his YouTube channel, the former two-division champion explained that it is much harder for fighters to perform when they are expected to come out on top.

The 43-year-old added that Makhachev faced a similar situation at UFC 280 because so many people expected him to win:

"Islam Makhachev became the champion. It was a long time coming, at least to so many people in the know, it was an eventuality... but the reality is this. When you are expected [to win] it makes it very difficult to accomplish. So that's why when you hear people say he is the favorite, he is expected to win, that guy is sitting there and his b**t is all puckered up because he knows if he loses when expected [to win], the fall is much deeper."

Watch Daniel Cormier talk about Islam Makhachev vs. Charles Oliveira below:

However, it is fair to say that the lightweight champion controlled his nerves well and had a dream performance at UFC 280.

Place your bets for the upcoming UFC fight night main card and earn $$$.

In the second round of the fight, Islam Makhachev dropped Charles Oliveira with a right hand, quickly settled on top of the Brazilian, and executed a perfect arm triangle choke to seal his victory.

The lightweight champion will next be seen against pound-for-pound king Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia on February 12.

---

When Khabib Nurmagomedov stated that he was very nervous during Islam Makhachev's fight against Charles Oliveira

Although Islam Makhachev won the fight against Charles Oliveira with flying colors, the Dagestani's coach and long-time friend Khabib Nurmagomedov was extremely nervous during the fight.

In an interview with ESPN MMA's Brett Okamoto at UFC 280, the UFC Hall of Famer explained that since MMA is an extremely unpredictable sport, he was very nervous for his friend during the Oliveira fight.

'The Eagle' suggested that he didn't want the 31-year-old to lose the fight by a twist of fate, like how Kamaru Usman lost to Leon Edwards:

"[I] was very nervous. Because I've watched all his life, the last 20 years, the way how he works so hard... And now it [was] almost time you know [to win the belt]. This is [a] very hard sport. Anytime anything can happen. Look at Kamaru Usman, he was winning all five rounds [then] boom! One time [he gets kicked] finished he loses his belt. [I was concerned about] the same thing, anytime anything can happen. Of course I was very nervous, I love this guy."

Watch the full interview below: