Islam Machakhev: Best UFC Fighter of 2025

By V. Messana

Islam Ramazanovich Makhachev is a Russian mixed martial artist and former sambo competitor. He currently competes in the welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is the current UFC Welterweight Champion and former UFC Lightweight Champion. He has been a professional since 2010, in addition to becoming a world combat sambo champion in 2016 and a two-time Russian national champion in the 74 kg weight class (2014, 2016). As of July 1, 2025, he was ranked #1 in the UFC lightweight rankings and #2 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings. 


Islam is a very versatile fighter, managing to knock out one of the best strikers in the UFC (Alexandre Volkanovski), but also submitting one of the best grapplers in the championship(Charles do Bronx). His fighting style is extremely dominant, with a ‘sambo’ focused on wrestling. He also has a good technique when striking. Additionally, the Russian fighter holds a 28:1 record with his only career loss being in 2015 when he faced Adriano Martins at UFC 192. He lost by knockout in the first round.


Apart from that, Makhachev succeeds in promoting his fights, utilizing social media to create more engagement with his audience, reposting content to increase viewership, and ultimately generating a significant amount of money for the UFC. 


Recently, Islam Makhachev has debuted in the welterweight division (77kg) and it couldn't have been better. After dominating the lightweight division (70kg) – where he won the belt and defended it four times with authority – the Russian fighter became champion in the new category by defeating Jack Della Maddalena in the main event of UFC 322 at Madison Square Garden in New York (USA). In addition to winning the welterweight title, he won his 16th consecutive fight, equaling the record of Brazilian Anderson Silva. 


"This is a dream. I've worked my whole life to have this here. I'm very happy, the belt is heavy and wonderful. I can do whatever I want, tonight was so easy. This is my (fight) plan, it's no secret to anyone. All my opponents know and nobody will stop me,” said the fighter.
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Overall, Makhachev has had an insane career and could be said to be the best UFC fighter of 2025