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Islam Makhachev will face his biggest step up in competition yet when he takes on Dan Hooker at UFC 267. Makhachev is currently riding a dominant eight-fight winning streak and is often compared to former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Former lightweight title challenger Al Iaquinta has now weighed in on Islam Makhachev being compared to 'The Eagle'. According to Iaquinta, Makhachev could taste the same amount of success as Khabib though he may not be as dominant in his wins.
Al Iaquinta commended Makhachev for his dominant victory over Drew Dober but also pointed out that the Dagestani got taken down in his last outing. Iaquinta also believes that part of the comparison between Makhachev and Khabib stems from the fact that they look similar. Comparing Islam Makhachev to Khabib Nurmagomedov, Al Iaquinta told Submission Radio:
"He definitely can have a similar success. I think he is kind of like the beginning stages of that. Probably not as dominant in his fights. I mean well, the Drew Dober one was pretty f***ing dominant. I mean that was a Khabib-a** performance. The fight against Thiago Moises, I mean Moises kind of like, he was in that fight until... and I think a little bit more Moises kind of picked him up and took him down, which I don't think we really ever saw anybody do that to Khabib (Nurmagomedov). But yeah, I definitely can see the comparisons. They are teammates, they are both from Dagestan, they kind of look that similar look with the beard and you know they just kind of look like crazy Dagestani lunatics."
Watch Al Iaquinta on Submission Radio below:
Dan Hooker on Islam Makhachev
Dan Hooker stepped in for an injured Rafael dos Anjos to face Islam Makhachev at the UFC 267 pay-per-view in Abu Dhabi. Hooker believes that facing Makhachev is the closest one can get to fighting Khabib Nurmagomedov with 'The Eagle' having officially retired. Hooker recently told MMA Fighting:
“If I could fight any lightweight on the face of the planet, it would be Khabib. I want to see how I measure up with him. It’s no lie that Islam’s the next best thing. Beating Islam is the only opportunity you’re going to get to show what would have happened if you got in there with Khabib when he was champion. There’s a lot of exciting aspects about this fight. It’s just another one. I feel like it’s a perfect time for this fight to come together.”
