Islam Makhachev believes the most effective mixed martial artist isn’t necessarily the best striker or wrestler…
But someone capable everywhere who then targets an opponent’s weakest link.
And for Makhachev, that link often leads straight to the ground.
Speaking with Demetrious Johnson on his podcast, Makhachev explained his reasoning for avoiding prolonged striking exchanges against dangerous strikers:
If you [are competing] with some striker, you know what [is] the easy way?
If you want to hard [match], okay, strike with him all day. It’s going to be hard to finish him, but you know his skill.
He don’t have nothing in the ground.Just take him down, take the money, go home.
That mindset defines his overall approach – rather than testing himself in an area where an opponent is strongest, he prefers steering the fight toward a position where his own technical edge takes over.
His submission win over Dustin Poirier illustrated the approach well.
After surviving a tough stretch of the fight, Makhachev kept hunting for the finish and eventually landed a D’Arce choke, one of his favorite techniques:
I don’t go right away (from) here. I choke from my wrist.
I take the wrist and close.
That philosophy carries into how he trains as well, with Makhachev consistently stressing the importance of developing every part of his game rather than leaning on one strength:
You cannot want to be champion with good arms
You have to do everything.
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