Islam Makhachev hasn’t lost a fight in over a decade ahead of UFC 322.
On November 15, Makhachev will look to break a 21-year run by becoming the welterweight champion after vacating his lightweight belt to move up.
The Russian has been incredibly dominant at 155 pounds for a long time before taking on this new challenge.
While it looks like Makhachev has put on some additional size, it remains to be seen how he will deal with the size and power of defending champion Jack Della Maddalena.
The challenger may be one of the best fighters in the world today but that doesn’t mean he’s been perfect during his time inside the Octagon.
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Adriano Martins is still competing after taking a three-year hiatus from MMA
Jack Della Maddalena dreams of finishing Islam Makhachev in the main event of UFC 322 and he wouldn’t be the first fighter to achieve this feat.
Back in October of 2015 in his second UFC outing, the Russian suffered the one and only loss of his professional career.
Less than two minutes into the first round, a 23-year-old Makhachev was caught by a huge left hand from Adriano Martins that sent him to the canvas, leading to a knockout finish in Houston, Texas.
While the former lightweight champion would obviously go on to bounce back with one of the greatest win streaks in UFC history, Martins didn’t produce a victory in his following two bouts inside the Octagon.
He went on to compete for promotions like Fight Nights Global and Shooto Brasil from 2018 to 2021 before taking a three-year hiatus from MMA.
Since returning, Martins has gone 1-1, last competing in February of this year at BetCity Fight Nights 126 in Sochi, Russia.
In June of 2014, Martins posted the following statement on Instagram, his first post since November of 2019.
“Guys, after 5 years without my official account, we are back… I have a lot of stories to tell but today I’m going to talk about the last fight I had in France (at) Kongs FC event on March 30, 2024. We came away with victory after 7 years, going through the worst moment of my life, but I can say that God is wonderful, very happy to share it with you this chapter in my life, I’m always grateful for all the support I’ve received all these years, always.”
In the 14 posts that he has shared since getting his Instagram account back, four of them have been either photos or videos of his knockout win over Makhachev.
Adriano Martins received a $50,000 bonus for a win that has aged immaculately
When it comes to UFC wins that have aged like a fine wine, Adriano Martins being the only fighter to beat Islam Makhachev is right near the top of the list.
Fortunately for the Brazilian, with only five finishes in total taking place at UFC 192, with each main card fight going to a decision, he was almost guaranteed to win a bonus following his impressive win.
The other bonuses went to Albert Tumeov for his finish over Alan Jouban while Fight of the Night went to the light heavyweight title fight main event between Daniel Cormier and Alexander Gustafsson.
Also on that card, in somewhat of a forgotten matchup, Yair Rodriguez defeated Dan Hooker via unanimous decision.