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Makhachev (28-1) defended the Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight title four times before moving up to welterweight. He dominantly dethroned Jack Della Maddalena to win the 170-pound title last year and is now scheduled to defend it against Ian Garry (17-1) at UFC 330 on Aug. 15 at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia.
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Javier Mendez shuts down possibility of Islam Makhachev returning to lightweight
Makhachev’s coach, Javier Mendez, doesn’t believe his fighter will switch between weight classes and is likely done with lightweight entirely. Mendez recently revealed that the champion has gained five kilos (11 pounds) of muscle since moving up to welterweight and isn’t looking to move back down.
“He’s gained five kilos of muscle and feels better at welterweight,” Mendez told Alvaro Colmenero. “He prefers this weight class. I don’t think he’ll ever fight at lightweight.”
Notably, Makhachev has previously stated that he can compete at middleweight as well. When Dricus Du Plessis was the 185-pound champion, then-lightweight king Makhachev claimed that if the UFC offered him a title fight against the South African, he would gladly accept. However, the Russian hasn’t mentioned middleweight since moving up, shining a light on 170-pound contenders like Carlos Prates instead.
I’ve been interviewing Javier Mendez, Islam Makhachev’s coach. Here’s a summary of some of the interesting comments he shared with me.
“He’s gained 5 kilos of muscle, and feels better at welterweight—he prefers this weight class. I don’t think he’ll ever fight at lightweight”.
— Álvaro Colmenero (@KOlmeneroMMA) August 10, 2026
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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