Islam Makhachev became the UFC lightweight champion at UFC 280 on the back of an impressive 10-fight winning streak. He won the championship gold in his first-ever title fight in the promotion. However, UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping still believes that he has a long way to go before reaching the level of his mentor, Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Makhachev has lost only once fighting under the UFC banner. Now, he currently sits with a 12-fight winning streak, which is a modern UFC record. He is two wins away from surpassing his mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov’s record. Despite the accolades and achievements, Michael Bisping still believes that Makhachev has a lot of room for improvement.

Michael Bisping praises Islam Makhachev’s fighting style

‘The Count’ recently posted a video on his channel discussing the reigning lightweight champion with Anthony Smith. Bisping didn’t want to rile Makhachev’s fans up, so he chose to be careful with what he had to say. He added, “Islam Makhachev has legions of passionate fans worldwide. So I have to pick my words carefully.” 

Bisping lauded the Dagestan native for his skills and capabilities as a fighter. He loves to see him fight. ‘The Count’ said, “[He’s a] tremendous fighter, I am a huge fan of him. I love what he brings to the table. I love his style.” Michael Bisping also praised Makhachev for maintaining his traditional style of fighting, which was introduced in the UFC by Khabib Nurmagomedov. “He’s carrying on all the tradition and everything that Khabib brought to the table and he’s continuing that,” said Michael Bisping.

Bisping doesn’t consider Islam Makhachev to be as good as ‘The Eagle’

The Hall of Famer spoke about Makhachev’s desire to be held in the same respect as Khabib Nurmagomedov as an MMA fighter. He also claimed that it might be disrespectful to call him the second coming of the retired, undefeated Russian fighter. Bisping said, “It almost sounds disrespectful, like a ‘Khabib 2.0’ but I think that’s fair to say. I understand and I respect him wanting to be held in that regard.”

However, when it comes down to who’s better between the two, Bisping claims Makhachev is not on the same level as Khabib Nurmagomedov. He made sure people understood that he had no bad blood against the lightweight champion and that his analysis was purely impartial. ‘The Count’ added, “The reality is he’s just not there yet sadly, and I don’t say that with any amount of spite or malice.” Bisping took a look at Makhachev’s UFC record and noted how he has fought on two credible big names so far – Charles Oliveira and Alexander Volkanovski. In comparison, Khabib Nurmagomedov has fought more opponents of that nature.

READ MORE: “Number One Thing That Will Help Oliveira” – How Dustin Poirier Can Help Charles Oliveira to the Islam Makhachev Title Shot

Makhachev nearly escaped defeat in his last fight against the featherweight champion. However, he still holds the gold and looks forward to fighting more credible fighters in the future. There are rumors that he might have a second fight with Charles Oliveira following the Brazilian’s triumphant return at UFC 289. We will have to wait and see what follows.

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