What is Islam Makhachev's Net Worth?
Islam Makhachev is a Russian professional mixed martial artist who has a net worth of $6 million. Islam Makhachev competes in the lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In late 2022, he became the UFC Lightweight Champion, and the following year was ranked number one in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings. Makhachev previously competed in the martial art sambo, and was a combat sambo world champion in 2016.
Early Life and Education
Islam Makhachev was born on October 27, 1991 in Makhachkala, Dagestan, Russia and was raised in the remote village of Burshi. He has an older brother named Kurbanismail. Makhachev began practicing martial arts at an early age, starting with taekwondo when he was seven. He next practiced the Chinese combat sport sanda. After that, Makhachev trained in freestyle wrestling for a year, and then switched to mixed martial arts. While training, he attended Dagestan State University, where he studied physical education and sports.
MMA Career in Russia
Makhachev began his professional mixed martial arts career in 2010 in the Tsumada Fighting Championship. In his lightweight debut, he defeated Magomed Bekbolatov. Early the next year, Makhachev made his debut with the promotion M-1 Global, and defeated Tengiz Khuchua via KO in the first round. He subsequently beat Martiros Grigoryan, Magomed Ibragimov, Vladimir Egoyan, and Migel Grigoryan. In 2012, Makhachev defeated Anatoly Kormilkin, and in 2013 he beat Mansour Barnaoui and Rander Junio. He went on to fight his final two bouts in the M-1 Global promotion in 2014, beating Yuri Ivlev and Ivica Trušček.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
After leaving M-1 Global in 2014, Makhachev signed a four-fight contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He made his debut for the promotion at UFC 187 in the spring of 2015, defeating Leo Kuntz. Makhachev suffered his first professional loss in his next fight, losing via KO in the first round to Adriano Martins at UFC 192. He returned in better form to face Chris Wade at UFC Fight Night 94 in 2016, winning the fight via unanimous decision. Makhachev next faced Nik Lentz at UFC 208 in early 2017, again winning by unanimous decision. After close to a year away from the ring, he returned in early 2018 to defeat Gleison Tibau at UFC 220. That was followed by a victory over Kajan Johnson at UFC on Fox 30. In 2019, at UFC Fight Night 149, Makhachev defeated Arman Tsarukyan via unanimous decision and earned his first Fight of the Night award. Later in the year, he defeated Davi Ramos by unanimous decision at UFC 242.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic and an unrelated personal ailment caused Makhachev to miss all of his scheduled bouts. He returned to the ring in 2021 at UFC 259, where he defeated Drew Dober. That summer, Makhachev defeated Thiago Moisés at UFC on ESPN 26. In his final bout of 2021, he beat Dan Hooker at UFC 267. Early the following year, Makhachev defeated Bobby Green via TKO in a catchweight bout. His next bout was at UFC 280, where he faced Charles Oliveira for the vacant UFC Lightweight Championship. Makhachev ended up winning the fight and claiming the title. He went on to successfully defend the Lightweight Championship against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284. Makhachev defended the title again in a rematch with Volkanovski at UFC 294. He made his third successful title defense at UFC 302 in 2024, against Dustin Poirier. For the fight, Makhachev earned both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night awards.
(Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
Sambo
Makhachev previously competed professionally in sambo, a combat sport with Soviet origins. In 2014, he won the 74 kg division at the Russian National Combat Sambo Championship, a feat he repeated in 2016. Makhachev went on to win the 2016 World Sambo Championships in Sofia.
National Honors
For his MMA accomplishments, Makhachev has earned multiple honors from the government of his native region in Russia, Dagestan. In late 2022, he was given the Order for Merit to the Republic of Dagestan, and in 2023 he was awarded the Sali Suleiman medal, the highest honor bestowed by the Dagestan Ministry of Sports.
