Islam Makhachev scored one of the biggest statement wins in recent MMA history at UFC 280, submitting Charles Oliveira in the second round to claim the vacant lightweight championship.
Makhachev won every area of the fight from the opening bell, landing good shots on the feet and scoring an early takedown. Oliveira, the UFC's all-time leader in submission victories, threatened with a few submission attempts but did not manage to lock anything in due to Makhachev's superior positioning.
Makhachev also landed a few punches in the opening frame that seemed to rock Oliveira. The same thing would happen in the second round, but this time Makhachev did not allow Oliveira to survive.
After a right hand sent Oliveira to the canvas, Makhachev followed and quickly locked in an arm-triangle choke that forced Oliveira to tap out at the 3:16 mark of Round 2.
"I just want to say, this is my belt for coach Abdulmanap," Makhachev said. "Many years ago, he told me to train hard and you're going to be champion. I always ask God why he always gives me more than what I ask. I knew this wouldn't be an easy fight. This guy always pushes."
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Makhachev did what every recent Oliveira opponent could not manage. Oliveira had been rocked in several of his recent fights but always managed to find a way to turn things around and score the victory. This ability to survive in bad spots led to Oliveira winning the lightweight belt in December 2021 with a TKO win over Michael Chandler and a successful defense against Dustin Poirier.
In his most recent outing, Oliveira had again turned the tables after an early scare, submitting Justin Gaethje. However, Oliveira lost the title before that fight, having missed weight for the fight, leaving the belt vacant for the fight with Makhachev.
The threat of Makhachev's takedowns led to Oliveira throwing fewer strikes than normal and allowing Makhachev to win the punching exchanges before submitting one of the most dangerous ground fighters in UFC history.
After the fight, Makhachev, along with coach and mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov, called featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski to the ring to make an official challenge to face him for the lightweight belt in Australia. Volkanovski accepted the challenge before the two champions shook hands.
Makhachev has now won 11 consecutive bouts since his lone career loss, a 2015 TKO loss to Adriano Martins. The title win fulfilled a guarantee by Nurmagomedov's late father, Abdulmanap, who once said that after his son retired, it would be Makhachev who would go forward as the sport's best 155-pound fighter.
In the other title fight on the night, Aljamain Sterling took advantage of a vulnerable TJ Dillashaw to score the TKO victory and retain his title. Dillashaw told reporters after the fight that he blew out his shoulder in April and it continued to be an issue throughout training camp. The injury again came up in Round 1 when it appeared that Dillashaw's shoulder popped out before his corner was able to get it back into place. Sterling continued to push forward, however, and punish the former champ with ground and pound before the fight was called off.
CBS Sports was with you the entire way on Saturday bringing you all the results and highlights from the UFC 280 below.
UFC 280 card and results
- Islam Makhachev def. Charles Oliveira via second-round submission (head and arm choke)
- Aljamain Sterling (c) def. TJ Dillashaw via second-round TKO (punches)
- Sean O'Malley def. Petr Yan via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Beneil Dariush def. Matuesz Gamrot via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Manon Fiorot def. Katlyn Chookagian via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Belal Muhammad def. Sean Brady via second-round TKO (punches)
- Caio Borralho def. Makhmud Muradov via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Nikita Krylov def. Volkan Oezdemir via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Abubakar Nurmagomedov def. Gadzhi Omargadzhiev via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Armen Petrosyan def. A.J. Dobson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Muhammad Mokaev def. Malcolm Gordon via third-round submission (armbar)
- Karol Rosa def. Lina Lansberg via majority decision (29-27, 29-27, 28-28)
