Islam Makhachev Announces Retirement After Next Fight

Islam Makhachev, the reigning UFC welterweight champion and top pound-for-pound fighter, has declared that his next bout will be the final match of his professional MMA career. The announcement was made via a social media post on Friday afternoon.

Makhachev explained his decision, stating, "My next fight is one of the last in my career. 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." This implies he will face the victor of the interim welterweight title fight between Carlos Prates and Michael Morales.

The champion's decision to retire at the height of his career follows a similar path to that of his long-time friend and teammate, Khabib Nurmagomedov. Nurmagomedov also retired from mixed martial arts while undefeated and considered one of the greatest fighters of all time. Makhachev's motivations for retiring after one more fight remain unspecified, but he intends to conclude his career on his own terms.