Tsarukyan watched on this past Saturday as Islam Makhachev dominated Jack Della Maddalena to become welterweight king after vacating the lightweight throne earlier this year.

Machado Garry (16-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) will look to stake his claim at a title shot when he takes on former champion Belal Muhammad (24-4 MMA, 15-4 UFC) in Saturday's UFC Fight Night 265 co-main event at ABHA Arena in Doha, Qatar ( ESPN+ ).

With his one sided win over Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 322, Islam Makhachev is now the new welterweight champion. The 170 pound division is hotter than it’s been in years, full to the brim with new young challengers hungry to get their shot at gold.

Off the back of his latest championship exploits, Islam Makhachev has been touted as the potential greatest fighter to ever grace the UFC. Joining an elite members’ club overnight, Islam Makhachev scooped the undisputed welterweight championship in a one-sided win over Jack Della Maddalena to round out an impressive UFC 322 card.

Rakhmonov cemented himself as No. 1. contender when he defeated Ian Machado Garry at UFC 310 in December 2024. He was slated to challenge Belal Muhammad for the welterweight title at UFC 315 in May but withdrew due to injury. He has not competed since.

Islam Makhachev became a two-division champion and utilized a dominant grappling game to take the welterweight title in the main event from Jack Della Maddalena. Wrestling was the name of the game in the co-headliner, too, as Valentina Shevchenko defended her women's flyweight title against former two-time strawweight queen Weili Zhang.