Outside Source
Nate Diaz isn’t particularly impressed by Islam Makhachev’s UFC run. | Esther Lin/Showtime
Nate Diaz needs to see a little bit more from Islam Makhachev before he’s ready to consider the Dagestani standout among the sport’s all-time greats.
Makhachev became the 11th two-division champion in UFC history when he defeated Jack Della Maddalena via unanimous decision to capture weltereight gold in the UFC 322 headliner at Madison Square Garden in New York. Prior to that, Makhachev set the record in the UFC’s lightweight division for most consecutive title defenses with four. His current promotional winning streak sits at 16, tied with Anderson Silva for the longest in UFC history in any weight class.
Ever the critic, Diaz isn’t ready to put Makhachev in that category just yet.
“They just throw s—t out like that. He’s been there for like two minutes. He ain’t beat no one that great,” Diaz said in a stream with N3on. “The best lightweight ever was B.J. Penn. B.J. Penn beat Matt Hughes, … beat [Georges St-Pierre’s] ass and lost. So when you’ve got s—t like that and whatever Islam did, that don’t even match.”
Diaz and Makhahchev crossed paths on less than friendly terms in December 2024, when members of both teams hurled water bottles at each other ahead of a UFC promotional press conference. For Diaz, it’s more about a certain style of fighting, as both Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov have utilized a wrestling-heavy approach to great success in the Octagon. Diaz has been consistent in his criticism of those types of game plans over the years.
“Not that he [Makhachev] can’t be and won’t be though, but you’re just going to throw GOAT at the motherf—-er when he just showed up on the scene?” Diaz said. “They think I’m hating because we’ve got our differences, but there’s just s—t I’ve seen that I remembered forever, and I ain’t seen nothing from them motherf—-ers. I can’t even remember anything but getting bored in all them fools’ last fights.”
It Needs to Be Worth Watching
On the other hand, the Stockton, California, native seems to be more impressed with Ilia Topuria, who has won UFC belts at lightweight and featherweight while buillding a reputation for fearsome knockout power. For Diaz, it’s important for an all-time great fighter to be regarded as appointment viewing.
“I think he’s a more complete fighter, good fighter, though,” Diaz said. “You’ve got to just think of shit that you have to tune in for. Remember B.J. Penn vs. Takanori Gomi? I couldn’t wait for that fight to happen.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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