At UFC 322, history has been made. Islam Makhachev defeated Jack Della Maddalena to hoist the welterweight belt, and just like that, the Dagestani can call himself a two-division champion. Sure, Makhachev has fulfilled his dream and reached one major milestone in his journey. However, after grabbing the 170 lbs belt, a new wave of challenges has opened up that can lead to even bigger fights in the future.

After celebrating with the belt, the newly crowned welterweight champ took center stage and made himself clear to the President of the United States, Donald Trump, saying he wants to fight at the still unofficial White House card. However, to actually perform on that event, he needs an opponent with the kind of star power that matches his own. And although Ilia Topuria has emerged as a name, Joe Rogan believes two contenders from the 170 lbs division stand out as potential challengers.

In the post-fight discussion with fellow cageside commentators Daniel Cormier and Jon Anik, Rogan mentioned former welterweight champ and pound-for-pound #1,  Kamaru Usman, to face Makhachev. Following ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’, the UFC color commentator also mentioned surging contender Ian Garry as a potential opponent for the two-weight world champ. 

This is a developing story…