Islam Makhachev shares hilarious 'eating' take on why he will never become a three-division champion

Islam Makhachev (pictured) will fight for the welterweight title at UFC 322. [Image courtesy: Getty Images]
Islam Makhachev (pictured) will fight for the welterweight title at UFC 322. [Image courtesy: Getty Images]

While Islam Makhachev is hell-bent on earning a second UFC title, it appears he'd never dare try to go up to middleweight for a crack at a third belt.

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The former pound-for-pound king is all set to take on reigning welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena on Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden in New York. A win over the Australian will make him the 11th fighter to capture a championship in two weight divisions.

Makhachev's welterweight move, however, hasn't been without issues. After vacating the lightweight title earlier this year and committing to bulking up, he soon realized that after years as a 155-pounder, he was struggling to put on size.

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The Dagestani is now largely content with his shape, with under two weeks for the fight. However, the task of gaining weight seems to have put him off from going through the ordeal once more.

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Speaking to Match TV, the sambo maestro said that he was content with "becoming and remaining" a two-division champion. Addressing a potential future push for a third title, Makhachev said:

"I dream of becoming and remaining a double champion, of going down in history as someone who has won two belts. [A third belt]? I can't eat that much anymore." [H/t: @ChampRDS on X]
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According to FanDuel, Makhachev is a -290 favorite for the match-up, with Maddalena as a +215 underdog.

Check out Islam Makhachev's comments on a potential middleweight move below:

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Islam Makhachev shares hilarious update about UFC 322 camp with Khabib Nurmagomedov

Khabib Nurmagomedov's presence in Islam Makhachev's training camp in New York will undoubtedly boost morale. However, it seems Makhachev was enjoying life at the gym more while his mentor and friend was away.

In footage now doing the rounds on social media, Makhachev can be heard cracking a sly joke about 'The Eagle':

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"Everything was fine until you arrived two days ago."

The 34-year-old then went on to detail how his current fight camp was different from his lightweight ones:

"[Training partner Mukhamed] Berkhamov weighs 91 kilos. Before, I worked with a guy who weighed 84, 83 at most... I don't even think about the weight cut; life has changed. Before, I always thought about where to eat dinner, what to eat. Now, it doesn’t matter where we eat." [H/t: MMA Squad on YouTube] [0:23 second into the video]

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Edited by Ujwal Jain
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