Islam Makhachev is the friend and training partner of retired UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. After ‘The Eagle’s’ retirement, his friend Makhachev is looking forward to bring the gold back to Russia.

Now the Dagestani is swamping up the lightweight rankings with his back-to-back wins. Makhachev is about to face Thiago Moises in the upcoming edition of UFC Fight Night on July 17th. This is a very important fight for both the fighters, especially for the #9 ranked lightweight Islam Makhachev.

Just like Nurmagomedov, Islam Makhachev shares a similar grappling style which haunts a lot of Top-10 fighters. He is a fearsome rising prospect who has become a nightmare for the lightweight division.

The Dagestani is probably the last man lightweight fighters want to face. So is there any man who has defeated this petrifying fighter?

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Surprisingly, the answer is yes. Adriano Martins, a Brazilian mixed martial artist, defeated the Dagestani fighter back in 2015 at UFC 192.

It was Makhachev’s second trip to the octagon after he made his successful debut in the UFC. Till that moment, Islam Makhachev had never tasted defeat in his 11-fight career.

How Adriano Martins defeated Islam Makhachev?

Coming into the fight, Islam Makhachev was already seen as a dangerous contestant as his friend Khabib Nurmagomedov had shown the toughness of Dagestani fighters to the entire world. Fight fans were hoping for nothing less from the newcomer Makhachev.

Makhachev started off with his conventional southpaw stance and started looking for openings. But Martins kept his distance, which had Makhachev marching forward. Makhachev followed the Brazilian and tried to land a swinging left hook but unfortunately, he missed and got dropped by a right hand which was followed by a hammer fist.

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Islam Makhachev was flat on his back which force the referee Frank Collazo to end the show. Since that heartbreaking defeat, the Dagestani has never looked back as he has piled up 7 straight wins.

His comeback resembles the current UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira who got brutally knocked out by Paul Felder and went on to become a champion by winning 9 fights in a row. Giving rise to one of the greatest comebacks in UFC history.

Will Islam Makhachev become the next champion? Let us know in the comment section below.