Middleweight Champion?!?!?!?

Could Khabib Nurmagomedov add a middleweight title to his legacy? He could if he wanted to, according to his friend Islam Makhachev.

Khabib Nurmagomedov, UFC middleweight champion?

That’s something that could totally happen … if Khabib wanted it. Of course, he doesn’t. The former lightweight champion retired from competition in 2020 and largely disappeared from the sport entirely at the start of 2023. But his friend, training partner, and current 155 pound champ Islam Makhachev says it’s just a matter of desire.

“Today I was asked in one of the interviews: Can Khabib come back and beat Strickland in the championship fight?” Makhachev wrote in a recent Instagram post. “I can say with confidence that he would easily do it.”

“Almost three years have passed since Khabib finished his career, but he never misses a workout,” Makhachev added. “And I can say with confidence: If he wants, it won’t be difficult for him.”

There’s a lot of middleweight salivating at the idea of fighting Sean Strickland for the 185 pound title. Strickland took the belt off Israel Adesanya back in September, ending Izzy’s long reign at the top of the division. “The Last Stylebender” didn’t just beat all the contenders. He beat most of them twice. Strickland looks easy in comparison.

There’s lots of guys that could probably beat Strickland. Sniping one dude who is stylistically ripe for defeat is one thing. But could they fight their way to the top of contendership at middleweight and earn the shot?

Not like that’s a prerequisite in the UFC these days. UFC 294 features a co-main event between Khamzat Chimaev and Kamaru Usman. Both are former welterweights without any significant middleweight experience. Yet whoever wins that fight will be the man to face Strickland for his belt next.

With matchmaking like that going down, Khabib stepping in for a title shot doesn’t sound as far fetched as it might have a few years ago.