Khabib Nurmagomedov has backed his protege Islam Makhachev to finish former UFC champion Charles Oliveira inside three rounds.
Nurmagomedov has insisted Makhachev must fight Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title after the Brazilian was stripped of his belt at UFC 274 for missing weight. Oliveira went on to submit Justin Gaethje at the event to assert himself as the best lightweight in the promotion.
But Nurmagomedov thinks no matter how impressed fans were by Oliveira's recent performance, Makhachev is the better fighter. Predicting a fight between Oliveira and Makhachev, he wrote on Instagram : "My prediction is a maximum three rounds, no matter how good he is, Islam is better than him. Just remember these words."