Islam Makhachev's coach reveals he's rooting for Carlos Prates and prioritizes him in the UFC.

Prates at the UFC press conference. Photo: Reproduction/YouTube/UFC

PUBLICITY:

In August, in Philadelphia (USA), Islam Makhachev made his first welterweight (up to 77,1 kg) title defense by defeating Ian Machado Garry by unanimous decision. Following this, the Russian surprised everyone by announcing he is open to returning to action in 2026, thus making his next fight a mystery. To date, the UFC has not yet named the champion's number one contender, but Javier Mendez, his coach, has the ideal name in mind.

See too

UFC Ranking: Khabib's cousin plummets in the bantamweight division and falls further away from the title; Brazilian enters the top 5.

Pure humility! Fan Glover Teixeira praises and highlights the greatness of Maurício Shogun: 'Greater than me'

Maurício Shogun challenges Glover Teixeira to a rematch after their fight at Spaten Fight Night 3.

In an interview with 'Submission Radio', the renowned professional revealed that he is rooting for Carlos Prates to be chosen by the UFC to face his fighter. And the chance of the fight between Makhachev and the Brazilian happening is high, despite the latter facing strong competition from Michael Morales.

In any case, Prates is ranked first in the welterweight division, second only to Makhachev, has knocked out two former champions, and fights frequently, while the Ecuadorian, undefeated in MMA, has knocked out top opponents but last fought in 2025. Therefore, Mendez places Prates on his priority list, as does the Russian. In fact, the athletes discuss the possibility of a fight happening regularly.

“Yes, Makhachev is ready to fight. You heard him say he wants to fight before Ramadan because he wants to be active. I hope we can get Prates . If it's not Prates, there are three names on my target list that are probably on everyone else's list too: Morales, Prates, and Shavkat,” said the coach.

Makhachev focused before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC

Makhachev's history in MMA

Islam Makhachev , 34, is a UFC double champion and an MMA legend. With four successful title defenses, the Russian holds the record in the lightweight division (up to 70,3 kg). He began his career in the sport in 2010 and debuted in the UFC's biggest organization in 2015.

In this discipline, Khabib Nurmagomedov 's friend built a record of 29 wins and one loss. The welterweight champion's main victories were over Alexander Volkanovski (twice), Arman Tsarukyan , Charles Oliveira , Dustin Poirier , Ian Machado Garry , Jack Della Maddalena , and Renato Moicano.

Exclusive: Michael PQD talks about his brutal UFC debut victory.