Michael Chandler takes aim at “premature praise” for Islam Makhachev: “We just can’t say that he’s that good yet”

UFC lightweight contender Michael Chandler believes we need to pump the breaks on praise for Islam Makhachev.

The Russian has been out of action since his first-round TKO over Bobby Green in February. That victory, along with wins over names such as Dan Hooker and Arman Tsarukyan, has secured him a title shot. Makhachev is set to face Charles Oliveira next month at UFC 280 with vacant lightweight gold on the line.

Ahead of the Abu Dhabi event, the former Sambo competitor is a heavy favorite. With names such as Daniel Cormier and Khabib Nurmagomedov singing his praises, Makhachev is viewed as a future champion at 155-pounds. That’s despite the fact that he hasn’t beaten a top-five ranked opponent.

That last point is a massive one for former Bellator champion Michael Chandler. The Missouri native returns to action at UFC 281 against Dustin Poirier. If victorious, the 36-year-old expects to face the winner of Makhachev vs. Oliveira next year.

In an interview with MMAFighting, the lightweight downplayed a lot of praise going toward Islam Makhachev. Chandler stated that the Russian has yet to defeat a big name at 155-pounds, giving him pause. He also picked ‘Do Bronx’ to win the lightweight title encounter next month.

Islam Makhachev defeats Bobby Green at UFC Vegas 49

“Nothing against Islam, you say he looks great, you say he looks unbeatable at times, but he hasn’t really fought anybody,” Chandler stated. “That’s really the truth. He beat No. 14 and then he beat Dan Hooker, who was on a three or four-fight losing streak. Now people will say, ‘well, one of your wins was against Dan Hooker, what are you talking about?’ I fought Dan Hooker at a different time. He had just gone 25 minutes with Dustin Poirier, who at that time was the No. 2 lightweight on the entire planet.” (h/t MMAFighting)

He continued, “I’m not saying that [Islam] not that good. We just can’t say that he’s that good yet. It’s premature praise…To make Islam the favorite in that fight is somewhat crazy, I think. Maybe that’s me sticking up for Charles, because watching Charles, seeing what he’s done resurrecting his career, somewhat of a ‘couldn’t be relied on, up-and-down, win some, lose some, journeyman’ to now a very dominant champion on a win streak — he’s definitely one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world.”

Chandler concluded, “I think he goes out there and gets the job done.”