Islam Makhachev cites Carlos Prates' loss to Ian Garry in rejecting title fight
Prates will instead face Michael Morales for the interim welterweight title at UFC 336 in January, with the winner set to meet Makhachev next year.
Post by @UFCEurope on X
Islam Makhachev has said he turned down a welterweight title defence against Carlos Prates because the Brazilian had recently lost to Ian Machado Garry, a fighter Makhachev has already beaten.
The UFC has ended weeks of speculation that Makhachev would defend his belt against Prates at UFC 336 in January. Prates will instead fight Michael Morales for the interim welterweight title on that card, and the winner is due to face Makhachev to unify the belts next year.
UFC CEO Dana White said Makhachev ultimately decided he did not want to fight until after Ramadan, which runs from 7 February to 8 March 2027.
Speaking in an interview, Makhachev gave his own reasoning. He said: “They offered me a fight with Prates, who recently lost to a [Ian Machado Garry] who I beat.” He added that a win over Prates would only have set up a fight with Morales, who has been waiting for a title shot without fighting. He said: “Just let them fight and we will figure out who is the real challenger.”
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