According to his coach, Islam Makhachev’s technique has reached its peak.
Makhachev’s striking coach, Magomedgazhi Bagandov, is confident the champion has a shot at a win against Dustin Poirier (30-8, 1 no-kick). Makhachev (25-1) will defend his lightweight title against Poirier in the main event of UFC 302 on June 1 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. With Poirier notorious for winning with lethal punches and Makhachev coming from a Dagestan grappling background, taking the fight to the ground would be the obvious strategy for the champion.
Makhachev’s camp has emphasized the recent progress of his protégé’s striking skills. Makhachev recently claimed that his teammate, Bellator MMA lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov, is a better striker than Poirier. Coach Bagandov claims that Makhachev can not only match Poirier in the stand-up, but may even have the advantage against “The Diamond” in the stand-up.
“I’ve been following Poirier for a long time,” Bagandov said on Khabib Nurmagomedov’s YouTube channel, “He has a unique fighting style when it comes to striking technique. Not only can Islam go toe-to-toe with him, but if he doesn’t fight recklessly, Islam can out-do him… Even putting wrestling aside, in my opinion, Islam can beat him in pure boxing and Muay Thai. There is no aspect in which Islam is inferior.”
Makhachev has shown great improvement in striking over the past few years, going toe-to-toe with the likes of Charles Oliveira and Alexander Volkanovski and knocking out “The Great” with a head kick in his last bout, while Poirier reminisced about his dominant stand-up style with a second-round knockout win over French finishing machine Benoit Saint-Denis in March.
