Usman Nurmagomedov wants to see his cousin, Islam Makhachev, take on former UFC champ Kamaru Usman in a legacy fight.
Makhachev (28-1 MMA, 17-1 UFC) recently won a UFC title in a second division by moving up to face Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322 in November. Now that the welterweight division has a new champion, the next contender has been a hot debate, as Shavkat Rakhmonov, Ian Machado Garry, Michael Morales, and Usman (21-4 MMA, 16-3 UFC) have all been viewed as viable options.
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If it were up to Nurmagomedov, he would like to see Makhachev face Usman, even though he’s behind all of the others in the UFC’s official rankings.
“For my opinion, how I know Islam, he don’t care who he will fight, but for Kamaru Usman, this is a fight for the legacy,” Nurmagomedov told MMA Junkie. “This is one of the best welterweights of all history. Just the problem, people doesn’t respect him, you know? They don’t respect him, and I don’t know why. He had one of the best win streak in welterweight. He had one of the best defending (title reigns). This guy lost, but in his last fight, he beat a young lion (Joaquin Buckley). He fought all five rounds. This is very good, and he doesn’t get tired. You see how he was looking? He was looking amazing.”
Usman’s welterweight title reign saw five defenses. It came to an end by knockout against Leon Edwards at UFC 278, and he failed to recapture the title in their rematch at UFC 286. Usman then dropped a third straight fight, albeit a very short-notice fight at middleweight against now-champion Khamzat Chimaev. The result of that one was a majority decision, which some media members scored as a draw or an outright win for Usman.
The matchup is one that both Makhachev and Usman want. Usman admits the fight “scares” him, while Makhachev sees it as “the hardest fight” for him currently. Nurmagomedov is all about his cousin taking on Usman next, too.
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“For my opinion, he deserve,” Nurmagomedov said. “When he was champion, he fight with everybody UFC give him. He knocked out (Jorge) Masvidal, he beat double, he beat twice (Colby) Covington, he beat Gilbert Burns on his prime – brother, this guy’s a beast. He have a history. People have to understand this. That’s why he want to fight with him, becuase he would prove his legacy. For these young guys, they can wait.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Islam Makhachev’s cousin wants to see Kamaru Usman ‘legacy fight’ next
