Joaquin Buckley names Islam Makhachev's "worst nightmare" and explains why it can't be Jack Della Maddalena 

Islam Makhachev has confirmed his move to the UFC welterweight division after vacating the lightweight title. Recently, UFC welterweight contender Joaquin Buckley referred to himself as Makhachev's "worst nightmare" in the 170-pound division.

With ambitions of moving up the promotion, the No.7-ranked Buckley said that he would be interested in a fight against Makhachev.

In an exclusive interview with Parry Punch, Buckley glossed over UFC welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena's chances against Makhachev, and instead focused on himself and said:

"Even though me and Islam have never had a connection, he's going to know a lot about me if we ever get booked to fight... The people he has struggled with and the people that have shown a couple of holes in his game — I'm going to be his worst nightmare, not JDM [Maddalena]. JDM has a lot of holes that Islam can exploit... But what I did to Colby [Covington] and what I'm going to do to Kamaru [Usman] — even Khabib [Nurmagomedov] will probably tell him moving up ain't a good idea."

Check out Joaquin Buckley's comments about Islam Makhachev below (via @RedCorner_MMA on X):

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Daniel Cormier previews potential fight between Jack Della Maddalena and Islam Makhachev

One of the main reasons behind Islam Makhachev's move up to the UFC welterweight division is his desire to become a two-weight-class champion. Currently, Jack Della Maddalena holds the title in the 170-pound division.

Although there hasn't been any official confirmation yet, many believe that Della Maddalena will face Makhachev in his first title defense. In a recent interview with Red Corner MMA, Daniel Cormier previewed a potential fight between the two, saying:

"I think Islam and Jack Della Maddalena is a great fight. Della Maddalena surprised me in his fight with Belal Muhammad, like, he just showed that he's much better than people gave him credit for, so well-rounded, so skilled. Makhachev, though, bigger, will have an ability to not be cutting all the weight. He'll be more full, he'll be more fresh, I'm interested."

He added:

"I think it'll come down to the wrestling of Islam versus Jack's takedown defense, and how stingy is he gonna be able to be with Islam. Because when Islam can take guys down early, they really struggle. The only time a fight looks competitive is when they can defend takedowns, and he spends large amounts of time on his feet, which he does really well too."

Check out Daniel Cormier's comments below: