With Islam Makhachev and Jack Della Maddalena all but set to fight at Madison Square Garden later this year for the Welterweight title, former UFC Middleweight title contender Chael Sonnen has questioned which direction Islam Makhachev’s career would take if he were to lose the bout. Despite Islam Makhachev’s almost unbeatable aura, the fight against Della Maddalena is perhaps the most compelling and difficult of his career, especially when you consider the fact that Makhachev is moving up in weight, coupled with Della Maddalena’s performance back in May against Belal Muhammad to win the title, which showed the he has elite striking skills and is more than capable of dealing with world class grapplers.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Chael Sonnen said, “It’s a lot closer match than you think it is. It’s also a pivotal match where two different divisions, two different athletes, and two different worlds go from here. What an incredibly difficult position to put Islam in if he loses. Now you’re going to have a choice: are you going to run back to 155? Which, by the way, isn’t the way you left it. There’s a new king. Or do you start re-climbing the ladder at 170?”
It is a very intriguing question for Makhachev to answer: should he lose the bout? As Sonnen said on his YouTube channel, it is probably not a scenario that Makhachev’s team is considering. Still, for fans, it is a real possibility as it is somewhat of a 50-50 fight. If Makhacev were to lose, it may be hard for him to return to lightweight, having put so much time into bulking up to welterweight, and there are several fun matchups in the division for the Dagestani, which may compel him to stay.
Sonnen also added, “The only way you’re going to get Islam and Ilia is if Jack wins.” This is probably the most likely bout for Makhachev next if he were to lose against JDM. It would certainly fulfil a lot of fans’ wishes, who had been hoping for this bout to take place when Ilia Topuria moved up to lightweight. Perhaps a silver lining for Makhachev should he lose, as this is probably the biggest fight he could have right now.
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