Do we like them?

Do we like Islam Makhachev?

Our score: 4 out of 10. Real charity work sits next to a deleted sexist tweet and his own stated opposition on LGBTQ+ topics, though no campaigning against anyone turned up.

Makhachev is the Dagestani grappler who took the UFC lightweight belt in Abu Dhabi in 2022 and then moved up to welterweight. He beat Jack Della Maddalena 50-45 on all three cards in November 2025 to become a two-division champ. In August 2026 he beat Ian Machado Garry to defend that belt and stretch his win streak to 17, a record.

Off the mat, 2026 has been all stoush. Dana White cited a hand injury for Makhachev missing the White House card, and reports linked that injury to a cancelled fight with Ilia Topuria, which his manager denied. Back in 2023, Dan Hooker accused him of using IV rehydration before UFC 284; his management team called that false and no sanction was reported.

Now the harm check. In June 2026 he said he'd been cautioned to avoid LGBT topics, then added “My religion, my culture, my country is against it, and so am I.” That is his own stated opposition, though I found no campaigning or policy push from him. In 2024 he called the Paris Olympics opening “disgusting” and said it was disrespectful to all religions.

The company he keeps is a smaller mark. After his 2022 title win he posed for photos at the Grozny home of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, whom the report describes as sanctioned by US officials. The article carries no statement from Makhachev about it, so that's a photo, not a position.

So: great at his job, kind to kids, and not someone who has campaigned against anyone. But his own words on LGBTQ+ people and women's sport mean we can't give him a clean tick. It's a close call, and a 4 feels fair.