“I wouldn't fight him” – Welterweight champion Belal Muhammad will not fight Islam Makhachev for one heartwarming reason

Islam Makhachev ’s interest in moving up to the welterweight division of the UFC has met with reactions that might just keep his dream of winning a second title on the sidelines for now. Current welterweight champion Belal Muhammad ’s recent interview with Radio Submission has confirmed that the fighter is not willing to get into the Octagon against Makhachev, owing to the past relationship shared between them.
Belal Muhammad lists possible contenders for Islam Makhachev, suggests Ilia Topuria to secure a lightweight win before title run UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad is all prepared to defend his title against Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315 . The MMA community and fans have been speculating how the results of this bout will determine the next opponent for Islam Makhachev, post the Dagestani fighter’s move up to the welterweight division.

In his recent interview with Radio Submission, Muhammad clearly stated his intentions of facing the lightweight champion, “No, I wouldn’t fight him. That time, they’ve done so much for me, they’ve helped me so much that it wouldn’t be worth it to fight those guys. There’s too much respect and loyalty on my end. I think people are just wondering and hoping for him to fight, looking for any excuses for him, right?”

🚨 Belal Muhammad confirms he would NOT fight Islam Makhachev

“Nah, I wouldn’t fight him. Their team has done so much for me and helped me so much that it wouldn’t be worth it to fight those guys. There’s just way too much respect.”

via @SubmissionRadio pic.twitter.com/GpmnbekwqR

— ACD MMA (@acdmma_) April 24, 2025

Muhammad went on to list the names of fighters who can make up for worthy opponents for Makhachev instead, “There are guys in that division who make sense. Justin Gaethje makes sense…He hasn’t fought Justin Gaethje yet. You got Paddy Pimblett, who just came off a big finish. Michael Chandler, he has a big name…You got Charles Oliveira waiting for a rematch, you have Arman Tsarukyan waiting for a rematch.”


In the case of Ilia Topuria, the fighter stands firm on his previous opinion of Topuria winning a lightweight bout with some other fighter and then securing a title bout. A direct title run would just create a negative impression for Makhachev and his team as a whole.

Muhammad’s statement might create an obstacle for Makhachev’s second title win. During the interview, Muhammad expressed his desire to see how the dynamics within the welterweight division change. This indicates that the fighter might just not be considering vacating his title and moving up to the middleweight division at the moment.

“I wasn’t expecting to fight Jack…So you never know how the division is going to roll out. Or how the UFC lets it’s stuff play out. There are a lot of fighters out there for the winner of this bout. I think the division is the best that it’s ever been in a while. And they have got the best welterweight that’s ever been at the top right now and so he [winner of UFC 315] is willing to fight all these fights. So it doesn’t matter who’s going to win. All I need is a call in date from the UFC”

Also read: Welterweight champion Belal Muhammad breaks silence on Dana White’s AI-based ranking system ahead of UFC 315

Islam Makhachev and Islam Makhachev share a friendly history while training under Khabib Nurmagomedov . This bond creates a hindrance for both fighters to face each other in the Octagon. While nothing has been confirmed yet, all eyes are fixed on the UFC 315 main event, for the result shall determine the roadmap for the lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev.