In his own league
The GOAT conversation in MMA has always been uncomfortable.
Jon Jones. Georges St-Pierre. Anderson Silva. Demetrious Johnson. Khabib Nurmagomedov. Now Islam Makhachev has forced his way into it.
At 29–1, Makhachev is no longer simply Khabib’s successor, becoming lightweight champion, defending that belt four times, moving to welterweight and defeating Jack Della Maddalena for a second divisional title and now he has now successfully defended the 170lb championship against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330.
That victory produced something even more significant. 17 consecutive UFC wins. Nobody has ever done that before. Anderson Silva’s legendary run stopped at 16. Makhachev has now gone beyond it. Is he the GOAT? Not quite and that is not being disrespectful, Jon Jones still owns 16 UFC title fight victories, while Georges St-Pierre has 13.
Makhachev currently has 7. GSP also defended the welterweight championship 9 times before later returning to capture the middleweight belt. Those careers possess a championship longevity Islam has not yet matched but Makhachev has something they can no longer obtain, time.
At 34, he says at least 3 major fights remain. Win those against elite welterweights and the argument changes dramatically. What makes him frightening is that his dominance rarely looks desperate.
His wrestling suffocates opponents, reducing him to grappling; misunderstanding how complete he has become. He knocked out Alexander Volkanovski. He submitted Dustin Poirier. Against Garry, when the fight became uncomfortable, he still found the decisive moments required of a champion. Perhaps the GOAT debate has become too obsessed with deciding one permanent winner, Makhachev is doing something more interesting, he is making the old answers feel less secure.
Jones still has the resume. GSP may still have the cleanest legacy. Islam Makhachev now has the momentum and if those next three fights end with his hand raised, we may stop asking whether he belongs beside the greats, we may start asking whether anybody still belongs above him.
