Colby Covington recently offered rare praise to Islam Makhachev after his dominant victory at UFC 322 last Saturday. Makhachev, a former lightweight champion, moved up to welterweight and earned a unanimous decision win over Jack Della Maddalena.
Makhachev’s win makes him the 11th fighter to claim titles in two UFC divisions. Covington, known for his brash personality, has often criticized the Dagestani fighter and Khabib Nurmagomedov. He claimed Nurmagomedov avoided moving up to welterweight because he feared facing opponents of his own size.
However, Covington was impressed by Makhachev’s performance against Della Maddalena and praised him for executing his strategy. Covington admitted he was surprised by how the Dagestani managed to control the entire fight with his grappling.
“I didn’t see it coming. I thought that [Della Maddalena] was the bigger guy and he would be able to overpower Makhachev,” Covington told The Schmo. “Hats off to [Makhachev], man. He implemented his game plan and was able to really just control the fight the whole time.”
Covington emphasized that dethroning Makhachev will be difficult. He highlighted strong wrestling as an essential skill to challenge him.
“You’re gonna have to stuff his takedowns and make him work like [Alexander] Volkanovski did in that first fight. Stuff the takedowns and brawl with him.”
Colby Covington Weighs In on Who Islam Makhachev Should Fight Next
Colby Covington also weighed in and shared his thoughts on who Islam Makhachev should face next. There are several exciting matchups for the new welterweight champion, which has sparked debate among fans.
Covington believes that his former rival, Kamaru Usman, would be a worthy challenger. However, he argued that Makhachev vs. reigning lightweight champion Ilia Topuria is the biggest fight the UFC can book.
“I wanna see the [Ilia] Topuria fight. Everybody wants to see the Tapuria fight. I think it needs to happen,” Covington said during an interview with journalist Helen Yee. “Whether they do it at welterweight or they do it at lightweight, that fight needs to happen. We need to settle it.”
Covington Believes Topuria is Makhachev’s Most Difficult Matchup
Covington also shared his analysis of a hypothetical Makhachev vs. Topuria bout and how they would match up with each other. He believes that Topuria would present the most difficult challenge for the welterweight champion.
Covington explained that Topuria could threaten to the Dagestani with his grappling skills. He noted that Topuria’s knockout power and proven ability to maintain a standing fight could be an issue for Makhachev.
“I think that Ilia will be [Makhachev’s] toughest fight because he has that low center of gravity, so he’s a lot shorter. So, it’s going to be a lot harder to take him down and hold him down,” Covington told Helen Yee. “[Topuria’s] got good jiu-jitsu. I see him getting back to the feet.”
He added:
“Obviously, [Topuria’s] one of the biggest punchers the UFC’s ever seen, so I’d like to see Ilia get his hands on him and knock him out.”
Topuria has called for the fight even before he moved up to lightweight. He even expressed confidence in his chances after seeing what unfolded at UFC 322.
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