{"id":6707,"date":"2026-02-15T17:00:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T16:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/?p=6707"},"modified":"2026-02-16T17:15:28","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T16:15:28","slug":"ali-abdelaziz-sets-the-record-straight-islam-makhachev-and-justin-gaethje-beyond-ilia-topuria-for-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/ali-abdelaziz-sets-the-record-straight-islam-makhachev-and-justin-gaethje-beyond-ilia-topuria-for-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Ali Abdelaziz Sets the Record Straight: Islam Makhachev and Justin Gaethje Beyond Ilia Topuria\u2026 For Now"},"content":{"rendered":"

Amid ongoing debates about the UFC\u2019s championship future, Ali Abdelaziz<\/span><\/span><\/strong> stepped in to clarify the situation, sending a strategic warning<\/strong> directly to Ilia Topuria<\/span><\/span><\/strong> while outlining the path for his two champions, Islam Makhachev<\/span><\/span><\/strong> and Justin Gaethje<\/span><\/span><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Topuria: Between Lightweight Title and Makhachev Obsession<\/h4>\n

While conventional logic expected Topuria to prepare for his first lightweight title defense against Justin Gaethje<\/strong>, he chose to publicly accuse Islam Makhachev of avoiding the fight. This media escalation blurred the competitive landscape, even as Makhachev showed conditional openness to the matchup.<\/p>\n

Abdelaziz: No Room for Media Theater<\/h4>\n

Ali Abdelaziz, known for his cold and calculated management style, clarified on \u201cX\u201d:<\/p>\n

\n

Justin Gaethje will soon fight for the undisputed lightweight title<\/strong>, whether Topuria competes or not.
Islam Makhachev, meanwhile, will defend his welterweight title<\/strong> against a ranked contender.<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/AliAbdelaziz00\/status\/2022478770599530835<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This statement underscores to Topuria that titles are not dictated by public statements<\/strong> but follow a structured, regulated path.<\/p>\n

The Unspoken Messages<\/h4>\n

Beyond the explicit words, three implicit messages emerge:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n

    Gaethje is the gateway to the lightweight belt<\/strong>, and no one can bypass him.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  2. \n

    Makhachev competes at -77kg<\/strong>, and no fight outside his weight class will be forced.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  3. \n

    Topuria, despite his talent, does not control the pace<\/strong> against strategically positioned, seasoned opponents.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Between Sport and Strategy<\/h4>\n

    Ironically, defeating Makhachev would have given Topuria a historic symbolic boost and prestige within the Dagestani camp. Yet Abdelaziz temporarily closes that door, emphasizing that reaching the top requires patience and discipline<\/strong>, not media provocations.<\/p>\n

    Conclusion<\/h4>\n

    The future of title fights will not be decided by tweets or sensational claims. Abdelaziz rebalances the playing field<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

      \n
    • \n

      Gaethje for the lightweight belt,<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    • \n

      Makhachev in welterweight,<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    • \n

      Topuria facing the test of patience and strategic planning.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      The real question is no longer: Will Topuria fight Makhachev?<\/em>
      But: Is Topuria prepared to follow the long and legitimate path to the showdown?<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Amid ongoing debates about the UFC\u2019s championship future, Ali Abdelaziz stepped in to clarify the situation, sending a strategic warning directly to Ilia Topuria while outlining the path for his two champions, Islam Makhachev and Justin Gaethje. Topuria: Between Lightweight Title and Makhachev Obsession While conventional logic expected Topuria to prepare for his first lightweight […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6708,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45,21],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-6707","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mma","8":"category-ufc-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6707"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6707"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6707\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6709,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6707\/revisions\/6709"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6707"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6707"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mmamag.ma\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6707"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}