Dana White says Makhachev gave 'no reason' for delay; coach says Prates fight never set

UFC president Dana White said after UFC 333 in Abu Dhabi on Saturday that welterweight champion Islam Makhachev turned down a January date. Makhachev "was slated for January and then said, 'I don't want to fight until after Ramadan,'" he said, according to CBS Sports. Asked whether Makhachev had explained why, White answered, "No, no reason," Sherdog reported.

In a Submission Radio interview that surfaced on Sunday, Makhachev's coach Javier Mendez denied that a fight with Carlos Prates had ever been agreed. "There was never, ever a match set on our end," he said, according to Heavy.

How we got here

On Wednesday, Oct. 21, UFC analyst Alvaro Colmenero posted that Makhachev could defend against Prates in the UFC 336 headliner, according to MMASucka. His manager, Rizvan Magomedov, said it was "not close to becoming a reality," according to Boxing News. Two days later, Ariel Helwani wrote on X that the UFC was looking elsewhere, according to Athlon Sports. "Date doesn't work for Makhachev anymore. Unclear why," he wrote.

On Saturday's UFC 333 broadcast, the UFC announced Prates vs. Michael Morales for the interim welterweight title. It is the UFC 336 co-main event on Jan. 30 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, MMA Junkie reported. As Heavy noted, the UFC rarely adds an interim belt when the champion defended as recently as August.

"You can't hold up divisions like this," White said, according to CBS Sports. "You gotta keep moving and this fight makes sense." He added, per Sherdog, "On average, Islam fights like once a year."

White's and Mendez's accounts don't have to clash: White talked about a January date, Mendez about an opponent. Mendez did add, "I know the guy most deserving is Prates." Makhachev hasn't addressed White's "no reason" remark directly. He did post that he'd return "as soon as we find out who the real contender is," according to Uncrowned.

The trash talk

Prates called Makhachev a coward on Instagram after the announcement. "You told the UFC you wouldn't be ready to fight in three months," he wrote in Portuguese, in MMA Fighting's translation via theScore. That suggests Makhachev cited preparation time, but his camp hasn't confirmed it.

Makhachev answered on X by pointing to Prates's only UFC loss, a decision to Ian Machado Garry, whom Makhachev beat at UFC 330 in August. "I just beat the guy who chased you around the Octagon for five rounds. Shut up and go train," he wrote, according to EssentiallySports.

In a video on Sunday, Morales asked, "You called me a coward, but you needed ten months to get ready to fight me?" per Heavy. He also told Prates to "shut your mouth and quit smoking." By Jan. 30, Prates will have been out about nine months, and Morales, who last fought on Nov. 15, 2025, about 14 and a half.

The fighters

Makhachev is 29-1 with 17 straight wins, our records show. As a bet, he's 11-0 as the favourite in UFC fights since 2021, and he closed at −345 against Garry.

He has fought six times since February 2023, with gaps averaging about eight and a half months. We think "once a year" undersells that pace. But a Jan. 30 date would have come five and a half months after UFC 330, and his shortest gap in that run was about seven months.

Prates (24-7) has knocked out three straight since the Garry loss: Geoff Neal and two former champions, Leon Edwards and Jack Della Maddalena. He closed at −163 against Edwards and −112 against Della Maddalena, our page shows.

Morales is 19-0 and has stopped Neil Magny, Gilbert Burns and Sean Brady in the first round. He beat Brady as a +123 underdog at UFC 322, our page shows. We don't have odds on Prates vs. Morales yet.

What's next

Sherdog reports the interim champion is expected to face Makhachev in a unification bout, possibly next summer. Nothing is booked. Ramadan is projected to start on Feb. 8, nine days after UFC 336, and end around March 9, according to The National. UFC commentator Jon Anik expects Makhachev back between May and July, MMA Junkie reported.