Conor McGregor is set to make his much-anticipated return to the UFC this year. Starring opposite Michael Chandler as a coach, McGregor will reprise his role at TUF 31. As such, he has some strong thoughts about the current lightweight champ, Islam Makhachev.
Moreover, Makhachev, who is fresh off his title defense at UFC 284, has become the subject of controversy. According to Dan Hooker, the Dagestani fighter was guilty of using I.V. to rehydrate following his rough weight cut. Moreover, these allegations were further considered after fans started spotting injection marks on Makhachev’s arm during fight week.
Additionally, many pointed out that Islam previously failed a USADA drug test in 2016 as well. “An absolute cretin. A convicted steroid cheat that will do anything to avoid impact and stall a fight, and then talks down on one of the greatest exchanges of combat ever produced by our female combatants. These little gremlins! It’s back on. Filthy rats. Shame on the game.”
These harsh comments from Conor came after Zhang Weili vs Joanna Jedrzejczyk at UFC 248. Although the fight was amazing and one of the best in UFC history, Islam had written, in a deleted tweet, “This is not a woman’s sport”, which provoked a lot of fans, including McGregor.
Was Islam Makhachev found guilty after Dan Hooker’s allegations?
In the most recent controversy, there were a lot of claims that Islam may have cheated. From Dan Hooker to Alexander Volkanovski and even City Kickboxing coach, Eugene Bareman, the list of people commenting on the matter went on and on. Moreover, Islam’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz also posted and deleted some incriminating comments on the matter.
Further, Jeff Novitzky, the Senior Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance for the UFC, revealed that the Australian Commission is yet to find admissible evidence against Islam. As such, there is no credible source to confirm whether or not Makhachev actually received I.V. infusions or not. For the most part, I.V. infusions are completely banned in Perth, Australia regardless of the volume and medical professionals involved.
Mandatory blood test by AUS commission, Wednesday morning right before media and photo shoot.
Ask hooker find the nurse with commission, she can confirm https://t.co/Vm3uZMR2zH— Rizvan Magomedov (@Rizvan_RM) February 14, 2023
Additionally, we also saw Islam’s co-manager Rizvan Magomedov give an explanation for the situation. According to him, the mark on Islam’s arm was due to a blood test, which left an injection mark on his vein. As such, camp Islam implied that it was the Australian commission that was responsible for the mark.
Similarly, we also saw USADA release a statement where they indirectly addressed the matter. Stating that UFC fighters are not allowed to use I.V. infusions, without commenting about the Islam situation in particular. With no clear ruling on the matter, it appears as though Islam is innocent until further evidence is found.