Islam Makhachev next fight: manager says January UFC 336 return far from set

Rizvan Magomedov said talks over Islam Makhachev's next welterweight title defence are ongoing, but no date or opponent is close to being confirmed despite the champion targeting UFC 336 in Toronto on 30 January.

Islam Makhachev's manager, Rizvan Magomedov, has played down talk of the welterweight champion headlining UFC 336 in Toronto on 30 January, saying a fight with Carlos Prates at the start of next year is “not close to reality yet”.

Magomedov told Ushatayka during UFC 333 fight week in Abu Dhabi: “So far, it’s all just rumors and talk.” Pressed further, he confirmed that negotiations over Makhachev's next title defence are ongoing, but said any confirmation of a date or opponent remained a long way from realistic.

The comments cut against what Makhachev himself has said. Speaking immediately after his last fight in August, he said he “100 per cent” had to return either before the end of 2026 or in January. With main events already announced for the UFC's remaining numbered events this year, January is the only option left on that timetable.

It was reported earlier this month that Makhachev was being targeted for a January return, having said he wanted to fight again before Ramadan. He headlined the first numbered event of 2025 for the same reason.

UFC 336, the promotion's first numbered event of 2027, has been announced for Toronto, and talk had centred on a card built around the welterweight division. Michael Morales has already announced a January return, but nothing on the card is set.

Prates is still widely expected to get his shot at Makhachev in the near future.

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