Islam Makhachev says his next fight is 'one of the last' of his career

Islam Makhachev, the UFC welterweight champion, wrote on X on Friday, Oct. 30, that he is nearing the end of his career. "My next fight is one of the last in my career," the 35-year-old posted. He gave no retirement date and no count of fights left, so this is a hint, not a retirement announcement.

The rest of the post was about Carlos Prates and Michael Morales, who meet for the interim welterweight title on Jan. 30:

They say Prates is too dangerous for me and Morales is too good for me. So I want to face the best of them and prove to the world once again who is the best in world.

As of Saturday, we found no response from the UFC or Dana White, and no new fight has been booked.

His record and the retirement talk

Makhachev is the UFC's No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter, and he's 29-1, 18-1 in the UFC. His 17 straight wins are the longest run in UFC history, according to ESPN. He beat Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight belt in November 2025, then defended it against Ian Machado Garry at UFC 330 in August.

This isn't the first time he has discussed how long he has left. On Aug. 4 he called a report that he'd retire after UFC 330 "fake news". After that fight he said he had "at least three more spectacular and very tough fights," per Heavy, citing MMA Fighting.

We read "one of the last" as leaving room for more than one fight. It isn't "my last", and it fits what he said in August. He also said before UFC 330 that his streak would reach "20 minimum". That's three more wins from here, though the link between those two figures is our arithmetic, not his statement.

The row over January

On Oct. 23, Ag. Fight reported that a fight with Prates was no longer the plan for UFC 336, according to MMA Sucka. A day later, the UFC announced Prates vs. Morales for the interim belt. "You can't hold up divisions like this," White said after UFC 333.

The two sides don't agree on what happened. White said Makhachev was "slated for January", while coach Javier Mendez said, "There was never, ever a match set on our end." Makhachev himself told pound4padel, a Russian outlet, "They offered me a fight with Prates." The UFC never announced that fight.

They differ on the reason too. White said Makhachev told the UFC he didn't want to fight until after Ramadan. Asked whether Makhachev had given one, White replied, "No. No reason."

In the pound4padel interview, Makhachev pointed out that Prates had lost to Garry, a fighter he has already beaten. "Just let them fight and we will figure out who is the real challenger," he said, per ESPN. In August, he had said "we have to fight before Ramadan, 100%."

What comes next

Prates and Morales fight at UFC 336 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, under Joshua Van vs. Manel Kape for the flyweight title. ESPN expects Makhachev to return in the second quarter of 2027, after observing Ramadan in February and early March. It also expects him to face the winner, but the UFC hasn't announced that fight.

Prates, No. 2 in the UFC's rankings, is 24-7 with three straight wins. Morales, No. 3, is 19-0 and hasn't fought since stopping Sean Brady in the first round on Nov. 15, 2025. The market has Prates at 60% and Morales at 40%, and those prices can move before fight week.

Makhachev is 11-0 at the closing price in UFC fights since 2021, all as the favourite, when those prices implied 8.5 wins. His two welterweight closes, −323 (73%) against Della Maddalena and −345 (74%) against Garry, are in line with his lightweight title fights. Those ran from −180 (61%) against Charles Oliveira to −1250 (88%) against Renato Moicano, a one-day replacement.

We think the winner in Toronto would be priced near those 73-74% numbers, not the Moicano one. Prates is 7-1 in the UFC, Morales is 7-0, and neither would be a late replacement.