Dana White and the UFC have managed something miraculous. They have taken the proverbial lemons that life gave them in the form of the seeming disaster that the UFC 294 was turning out to be and made it into the most delicious and refreshing glass of lemonade possible. Islam Makhachev was supposed to face Charles Oliveira in the main event of UFC 294 next week.

This bout got canceled after the Brazilian pulled out due to a last-minute injury. And to replace Oliveira, the UFC managed to rope in Alexander Volkanovski to have a rematch of their epic UFC 284 encounter that was even more anticipated by UFC fans than the Oliveira rematch. And Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov manager Ali Abdelaziz revealed how the bout came about.

Islam Makhahchev’s manager tips his hat to the UFC team

Abdelaziz tipped his hat to the UFC team, including CEO Dana White, CBO Hunter Campbell, and matchmaker Sean Shelby. for making the card even better than was originally planned. Along with the main event, the co-main event also ran into trouble. Paulo Costa was supposed to face Khamzat Chimaev in their grudge match. However, Costa pulled out due to a surgery he had to undergo after a bad case of staph infection on his elbow. The UFC was able to rope in Kamaru Usman as a replacement. This impressed Abdelaziz, who had glowing endorsements for the top UFC brass.

“Tuesday earlier was Islam, you know… But listen, man Hunter, Sean, Shelby, Dana White, these guys they’re the best of the best. Man, they do a great job, they make a cool main event better than the one before it’s, so quickly it’s crazy,” he said.

Makhachev told the manager early on Oliveira would pull out

Abdelaziz cheekily suggested that he had also managed to get some ‘Dana White privilege’ in lieu of taking the short-notice fight against ‘Volk’. He also revealed that Makhachev had told him in advance that Oliveira would pull out of the bout, which the Brazilian later did.

Also Read: Moments After Pulling Out of UFC 294, Charles Oliveira Breaks Silence and Confesses on Injury as Dana White Ropes In Alexander Volkanovski Against Islam Makhachev

“I did, you know, got some little bit Dana White privilege, little bit. Not much at all, you know… I’m grateful the way they handle the situation with these two fights, they cannot have been more professional. And also credit to my guys, too. Islam, he said, I know he was not gonna show up. I don’t care give me somebody, I said, okay,” he said.

As a true champion, the Dagestani was ready to take on anybody the UFC put in front of him; the manager revealed. But will this move backfire? What are your predictions for UFC 294? Let us know in the comments section below.

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