Islam Makhachev releases statement following win over Thiago Moises at UFC Vegas 31

UFC lightweight contender Islam Makhachev released a statement following his submission win over Thiago Moises at UFC Vegas 31.

Makhachev defeated Moises in the fourth round with a rear-naked choke in his first UFC five-round main event. It was the eighth win in a row for the Russian and he improved his overall UFC record to 9-1 in victory. At this point, Makhachev is clearly one of the top-10 lightweights in the sport and he might even be a top-five fighter right now. In fact, his friend and training partner, former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, recently said that he believes Makhachev is the best fighter at 155lbs in the entire UFC.

Taking to his social media following the win over Moises, Makhachev released a short statement where he thanked his fans around the world for all of their support and love.

Thanks to everyone who follows my career, this is all for you If something is predetermined for you, then no one can change it #alhamdulillah I want to say thanks to all my fans around the world

With the win over Moises, Makhachev has cemented himself as an elite fighter in one of the deepest divisions the sport of mixed martial arts has ever seen. For his next outing, you can expect Makhachev to fight one of the top fighters in the division. He has been busy calling out the likes of Rafael dos Anjos, Tony Ferguson, and Michael Chandler and is interested in fighting any of these men for his next outing. At this point, it seems fair to say that Makhachev is likely no more than one or two wins away from fighting for the title, and that’s a great place for him to be.

What do you think is next for Islam Makhachev after beating Thiago Moises at UFC Vegas 31?