Although
UFC Fight Night 202 lost its originally scheduled main event,
the promotion still came through with a pretty decent backup
plan.
After Beneil
Dariush withdrew from the lightweight headliner against
Islam
Makhachev on short notice, Bobby Green
agreed to step in against the Khabib
Nurmagomedov protege on short notice. Though not as highly
regarded as Dariush, Green enters with positive momentum after a
first-round TKO of Al Iaquinta
at UFC 268 and a convincing decision victory against Nasrat
Haqparast at UFC 271. Overall, “King” has won five of his last
seven Octagon appearances dating back to 2020.
In a recent interview with Submission Radio,
Javier Mendez, who helps coach Makhachev at American Kickboxing
Academy, discussed Saturday’s fight against Green.
“Bobby
Green, he’s an incredible guy,” Mendez said. “I love the fact
that he’s a great entertainer. I love the fact that he comes to
fight, gives the fans a great fight. I’m a fan. He’s a great
fighter, and I love the opportunity that he’s been given. He’s been
around for a long time, and how he’s been put on the spotlight, so
he has an opportunity to showcase that maybe he’s entitled to a
title shot soon.
“We’ll see. My plan is to derail any thoughts he has of that. But
anything can happen in the fight. One good shot can take care of
anything. But outside of that, there’s no one that beats Islam
Makhachev. I’ve been saying it from the beginning, and I’ll
continue saying it now: Outside of knocking him out, you’re not
going to beat this guy. It’s just not going to happen.”
Makhachev has already been anointed by Nurmagomedov as the UFC’s
next lightweight champion, and thus far, he has lived up to the
hype. The 30-year-old Dagestani has compiled a nine-bout winning
streak within the Las Vegas-based promotion, a run that includes a
first-round submission win over Dan Hooker in
his last outing at UFC 267. Even though Green wasn’t the originally
planned opponent, Mendez believes a victory should put Makhachev at
the front of the title conversation.
“He beats Bobby Green,
that’s nine or 10-fight win streak. Who else has that? Who else is
in the top five?” Mendez said. “I think Islam
Makhachev gets a title fight with the win, with Bobby Green.
Likely he should – 100 percent he should. If you look at all the
other guys, you look at [Michael] Chandler, you look at Dustin
[Poirier], they’ve all had their shot, and they’ve all failed.
“The only one that hasn’t had his shot and is still in that top
tier is Islam
Makhachev. So, should he win, which I expect he will, I expect
that we’re going to get the title fight next,” he continued. “It
makes perfect sense. Bobby Green,
on the other hand, I’m not so sure if a win against Islam is going
to warrant that. But if the crowd wants it and the fans want it,
then you might see that. But I don’t look at us getting beat by
anybody. Like I said, no one’s beating Islam
Makhachev in the lightweight division. No one.”