UFC welterweight champion Islam Makhachev has a couple of clear title-fight challengers waiting for him, and he's ready to take them on.
Makhachev defeated Ian Machado Garry by unanimous decision earlier this month at UFC 330, successfully defending his 170-pound title for the first time after claiming the belt last November. With his latest triumph, Makhachev, a former UFC lightweight champ, pushed his winning streak to a UFC-record 17 fights in a row to surpass Anderson Silva's longstanding mark of 16.
There has been some previous chatter about how much longer Makhachev will carry on with his career, considering his mentor, UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov, retired undefeated at 29-0 when he was just 32 years old. The consensus is that
Khabib cut his career short of even more greatness.
While owning the record for longest UFC winning streak is nice, Makhachev, who is 7-0 in UFC title fights, doesn't appear to be satisfied just yet. And at 34, he said he's ready for the challenges that await him while setting a minimum of how much longer fans can expect to see him in the octagon.
“No record is unbreakable," Makhachev told reporters Monday (h/t Red Corner MMA). "There are fighters out there who are getting closer; they have 10 or more wins (in a row). I don’t know, maybe the title fights record? But it’s a hard one to beat. I had 10 fights before my first title fight.
"What I know is there are very good title contenders in my division, so I have at least three more very hard and exciting fights waiting for me.”
Michael Morales and Carlos Prates are the clear favorites to land the next UFC welterweight title fight against Makhachev, with Gabriel Bonfim another contender who's on the rise and could be one win away from his shot.
Makhachev owns wins divisional wins over Jack Della Maddalena, whom he beat for the belt, and most recently Machado Garry.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Islam Makhachev reveals minimum number of UFC fights left in him
