ISLAM MAKHACHEV has finally revealed his welterweight physique ahead of his showdown with Jack Della Maddalena.
The dominant former lightweight champion challenges the Aussie for the 170lbs title early on Sunday morning in the main event of UFC 322 at Madison Square Garden.
Makhachev has been pumping the iron for the best part of TEN MONTHS in preparation for his move to welterweight but has kept his physique under wraps.
But the Russian’s training partner, Usman Nurmagomedov, the cousin of UFC icon Khabib, gave fans a glimpse at the former pound-for-pound king’s hulking frame on social media earlier this week.
Usman shared a snippet of a topless Makhachev walking around the octagon after a hard round of training on Instagram.
The clip went viral on X and stunned MMA fans around the world, one of whom wrote: “Okay, Islam is in his tank arc, I get it.”
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Another said: “NGL, a bit scared for Jack.”
And another said: “He looks like he’s fighting in the right weight class now. Really looking forward to Saturday.”
One remarked: “RIP JDM.”
Another stunned fan chimed in: “Jesus Christ.”
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Makhachev’s hulking new physique isn’t just the result of lifting heavy weights and eating in a calorie surplus.
He’s beefed up thanks to taking the popular fitness supplement creatine for the first time in his life.
He told ESPN: “I’m using creatine for the first time in my life, almost every day.
“It’s the first supplement where I actually see real changes. It helps with recovery, helps gain weight, gives strength.”
He added: “It’s really hard to gain mass, but eventually I got a bit bigger. Over the last couple of months, it’s been a struggle.
“I was taking protein and creatine after every training session and tried to eat more.
“But it’s difficult to gain weight when you train twice a day.
“I want to weigh around 87 kg, and about 83 kg during fight week.
“I used to weigh 82–83, now it’s 87. The weight cut will be very easy.
“I used to feel like I recovered only 60–70 per cent [at lightweight]. It’s hard to recover in just 30 hours.
“Now I’m really curious to see how I’ll recover.
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“I already feel it’s going to be different, especially in the later rounds, the championship rounds.”
UFC 322 will be aired live in the UK on TNT Sports Box Office. TNT Sports is the home of UFC in the UK. To find out more, visit here.
