Usman Wants Makhachev to Fight Muhammad
Kamaru Usman argued in January 2025 that Islam Makhachev should consider moving up to challenge Belal Muhammad, despite their training ties. Since then, Makhachev has moved to welterweight and won the title; Muhammad is no longer champion.
Usman made the suggestion on the Pound 4 Pound podcast after Makhachev defended his lightweight title at UFC 311. At the time, Muhammad held the UFC welterweight belt and had trained with Makhachev and his team. Usman’s view was that training relationships should not rule out a high-stakes matchup. MMA Fighting’s report also noted that Muhammad responded to Usman on social media.
The proposed matchup never happened. Makhachev vacated the lightweight title and moved up to welterweight, where he defeated Jack Della Maddalena by unanimous decision at UFC 322 on November 15, 2025, to win the division’s championship. Muhammad lost the welterweight title to Della Maddalena at UFC 315 and later lost a unanimous decision to Ian Machado Garry at UFC Qatar. UFC’s UFC 322 results and UFC Qatar results record those outcomes.
Sources
- MMA Fighting: Usman’s 2025 comments and Muhammad’s response
- UFC: UFC 322 results
- UFC: UFC Qatar results
