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Islam Makhachev and Colby Covington may very well be on a collision course in the future.
The reigning 155-pound king is the latest Dagestani phenom to capture UFC gold. In the wake of his title-defending triumph at UFC 284, the AKA superstar expressed his desire to eventually conquer the welterweight division.
This brought the lightweight titleholder to the attention of Colby Covington, a former interim champion in the UFC's 170-pound weight class. While 'Chaos' was extremely dismissive of the Dagestani, Javier Mendez — Islam Makhachev's head coach — responded to the welterweight's callout of his pupil on his own podcast.
Mendez maintained an air of civility and opted against speaking too negatively about Covington. Ultimately, however, he allowed a jab to slip in after discussing the former interim champion's chances against reigning welterweight champ Leon Edwards:
"He's got great cardio, he comes back, when he loses he thinks he won, you know? And when he wins, he thinks won better than what he won. But he does win! He's basically a winner when he loses, he's a winner when he wins, so, you know, he's a winner, no matter what."
Catch the full interview below:
Despite the AKA founder's response to Colby Covington's antics, Islam Makhachev is not currently scheduled to face anyone, much less at welterweight.
Instead, the lightweight king is awaiting the results of the bouts between Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush, and Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje for his next title defense.
What did Islam Makhachev and Javier Mendez say about him fighting at welterweight?
During Khabib Nurmagomedov's undefeated run, 'The Eagle' never showed any intention of fighting in the UFC welterweight division. Some speculate that it could have been due to him having the same manager as then-reigning UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman.
Regardless, a protege of the unbeaten legend recently announced his desire to chase the welterweight strap after racking up a few title defenses at 155 pounds. This was supported by Javier Mendez, Islam Makhachev's head coach, who expressed his confidence in his pupil's ability to fulfill his dream.
This is especially the case now that Kamaru Usman is no longer the champion as the two share a management team.
