No Worries for Islam Makhachev as He Prepares to Fight Renato Moicano at UFC 311
Islam Makhachev doesn’t really care who’s standing across from him at UFC 311.
Up until a few short hours ago, the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ was prepared to defend his lightweight title against the division’s top-ranked contender, Arman Tsarukayn, on Saturday night inside the Intuit Dome in L.A. However, that is no longer the case after ‘Ahalkalakets’ was forced to bow out of the bout on Friday morning due to a back injury.
Instead, Makhachev will put his gold on the line against rising star Renato Moicano who was originally set to face perennial contender Beneil Dariush as part of the evening’s main card.
When UFC CEO Dana White broke the news during Friday’s official weigh-in show, he insisted that Makhachev was willing to take on anyone the promotion chose to put in front of him. Makhachev echoed a similar sentiment on social media not long after news of Moicano’s move up the card made waves.
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“What does this title represent?,” Makhachev wrote on Instagram. “It means you are the best in the world and if you are the best in the world, it doesn’t matter who’s going to be standing across from you. What do I say? No? NEVER. Let’s do this!”
Islam Makhachev is a massive betting favorite against ‘money’ moicano
Unsurprisingly, Makhachev emerged as a massive -1100 favorite to come out on top against Moicano, meaning that if you want to win $100 betting on the Dagestani, you’ll have to throw down $1,100.
For what it’s worth, Moicano goes into the short-notice title tilt with the longest active win streak at lightweight, including wins against Drew Dober and Jalin Turner, and an absolutely dominant performance against Benoit Saint-Denis in his last outing.
‘Money’ currently sits at a +700 underdog. That means a $100 bet on the Brazilian could net you $700 should he score what would be one of the biggest upsets in mixed martial arts history.
