{"id":379700,"date":"2021-03-23T16:13:36","date_gmt":"2021-03-23T23:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/?p=379700"},"modified":"2021-03-23T16:13:36","modified_gmt":"2021-03-23T23:13:36","slug":"islam-makhachev-would-love-to-fight-justin-gaethje-next-if-rda-bout-doesnt-come-to-fruition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/ufc\/islam-makhachev-would-love-to-fight-justin-gaethje-next-if-rda-bout-doesnt-come-to-fruition\/","title":{"rendered":"Islam Makhachev would “love to fight” Justin Gaethje next if RDA bout doesn’t come to fruition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Islam Makhachev believes he will face a top-10 opponent next time out.<\/p>\n

At UFC 259, Makhachev dominated Drew Dober en route to a third-round submission win. The victory extended his winning streak to seven in a row and is looking to fight a top-ranked opponent. The goal was to rebook the Rafael dos Anjos fight<\/a> this summer in the main event spot, but he is also open to fighting anyone in the top-10.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on with the UFC matchmaking but I think that\u2019s what will end up happening,\u201d Makhachev said after an Eagle Fighting Championship event (translation via RT Sport<\/a>). \u201cMost of the top-10 fighters are busy but I\u2019m 90 percent sure they\u2019ll give me a top-10 guy…<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that Felder doesn\u2019t want to fight often. He has other things going on with the UFC and isn\u2019t eager to fight anymore. As far as Hooker, I saw that he recently came home. He was quarantined for a long time so I don\u2019t think he\u2019ll want to come back soon. He\u2019ll probably want to rest after getting knocked out, so I think they\u2019ll give me dos Anjos.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Rafael dos Anjos fight certainly makes sense for Islam Makhachev. The Brazilian is the former lightweight champion and if the Russian can get his hand raised, he would likely get a number one contender fight. Yet, if the RDA fight doesn’t happen, Makhachev says he’d love to fight Justin Gaethje given the fact “The Highlight” isn’t booked right now and is available.<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, it\u2019s possible. Justin and I know each other but it\u2019s not like we\u2019re friends,\u201d Makhachev said. \u201cIt\u2019s possible. He\u2019s free right now. Why not? I\u2019d love to fight him.\u201d<\/p>\n

As of right now, Makhachev is just waiting for his next fight but is hoping to return in the summer.<\/p>\n

Who would you like Islam Makhachev to fight next?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Islam Makhachev believes he will face a top-10 opponent next time out. At UFC 259, Makhachev dominated Drew Dober en route to a third-round submission win. The victory extended his winning streak to seven in a row and is looking to fight a top-ranked opponent. The goal was to rebook the Rafael dos Anjos fight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":54463,"featured_media":379704,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[10285,25154,10109,39610],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nIslam Makhachev would "love to fight" Justin Gaethje next if RDA bout doesn't come to fruition | BJPenn.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Islam Makhachev believes he will face a top-10 opponent next time out and hopes it will be Rafael dos Anjos or Justin Gaethje in a main event\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/ufc\/islam-makhachev-would-love-to-fight-justin-gaethje-next-if-rda-bout-doesnt-come-to-fruition\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta 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