In the main event of the evening of UFC 280 in Abu Dhabi, Russian lightweight Islam Makhachev defeated Brazilian Charles Oliveira in a title fight. Not everyone expected such a convincing success from our fighter, so the comments of the foreign press and foreign fans turned out to be as vivid as possible.

Islam is the new Khabib

Oliveira on paper could be considered a favorite, because he called for a duel earlier than Conor McGregor himself, but instead of the Irishman he had to fight Islam Makhachev. A friend of Khabib Nurmagomedov had a series of 10 victories in a row and tuned in to continue the banquet. The duel with the Brazilian turned out to be one-sided and in a good way shocked the Western public on social networks.

“No one can defeat him for a very long time,” wrote guhan senthil.

– Great respect for Islam Makhachev. I don’t want to see any excuses, you have to give the guy credit. He made Oliveira look like an average fighter, but Oliveira is actually an elite,” 19Khanlm noted.

– Well, Makhachev’s haters, where did you hide? jc_jb said.

Russians are organized differently. They can defeat those who are considered undefeated,” wrote user2551025.

“Russians always dominate martial arts,” Mando said.

“Islam is really the new Khabib,” HeatCulture said.

– Makhachev’s dominance was shocking. Most of the fans, fighters and experts were betting on an easy victory for Oliveira, wrote iBuyTops.

– The majority of Western experts and fans, please note. The real fight fans knew what to expect from Islam,” user Shishir replied to the previous post.

Photo: © Chris Unger / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.com

Volkanovski reaction

After the victory over Oliveira, Makhachev did not think long and, together with Khabib, challenged Alexander Volkanovski, who, by a happy coincidence, was on the podium at that moment. The Australian accepted the challenge and said warm words to the Russian.

— I liked his challenge, why not. Did you see what he did to Oliveira? This is madness. He is a really strong fighter. Such challenges scare and motivate me at the same time,” Volkanovski said.

Alexander Volkanovski / Photo: © Carmen Mandato / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

“Makhachev has the perfect combination of skill and aggression”

Foreign media were also delighted with Makhachev’s performance, although for obvious reasons they could not be as emotional as ordinary fans. However, CBS Sports journalist Brian Campbell said that in terms of potential, Makhachev can already be compared with Khabib.

– Comparisons between Makhachev and Nurmagomedov did not initially seem fair, after all, they have a slightly different style of fighting, but now it has become clear that in terms of potential, Islam may well be comparable to Khabib. Makhachev has the perfect combination of skill and aggression that allows him to dominate against any opponent, Campbell wrote.

The journalist of the popular martial arts portal Bloody Elbow Duane Fox praised Islam for the fight and noted that Volkanovski’s challenge to a duel is a smart and far-sighted step on the part of the Russian.

– Makhachev did takedowns in the first round, spending most of it in the position from above, avoiding Oliveira’s attempts to hold a painful hold and inflicting a lot of punches and elbows. Makhachev was not afraid of his opponent’s attacks and deservedly became the new champion. After the victory, he did not waste any time and challenged Alex Volkanovski, who immediately accepted him. It was a wise and far-sighted move by Islam,” Fox said.

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev / Photo: © Chris Unger / Contributor / UFC / Gettyimages.com

“Makhachev fulfilled Khabib’s prophecy”

ESPN journalist Jeff Wagenheim recalled the story of how a few years ago, Khabib Nurmagomedov at a press conference after defeating Dustin Poirier called Makhachev the future UFC champion. Well, the prophecy has clearly come true.

– Becoming a champion, Makhachev fulfilled the prophecy of Khabib, who several years ago said that Islam would be the best fighter in the world. These two guys showed an example of true brotherhood before, during and after the fight with Oliveira. Makhachev showed back in 2015 that he would be a dominant fighter as soon as he entered the UFC. However, he did not have such a powerful resume as Oliveira, who had a number of top fights. However, that didn’t stop him from destroying the Brazilian on Saturday night,” Wagenheim wrote.