MMANews

Islam Makhachev vs Gregor Gillespie In The Works for UFC 249

By Amar K

 

Islam Makhachev vs Gregor Gillespie is reportedly targeted for UFC 249.

MMAScene confirmed this news with a source who had spoken to a member of Islam Makhachev’s team. The UFC has not made an official announcement.

There were strong rumors that Makhachev and Kevin Lee wanted to square off at UFC 249 but that was shot down when the UFC scheduled Kevin Lee to face Charles Oliveira as the main event on UFC on ESPN +28. The card will take place on March 14th from the Ginasio Nilson Nelson in Brasilia, Brazil.

?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="12" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);">

?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank">

View this post on Instagram

?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">Ассаламу Алейкум

A post shared by Islam_Makhachev (@islam_makhachev) on Jan 5, 2020 at 5:34am PST

Makhachev (7-1 UFC, 18-1 overall) has been touted by many as a future champion of the lightweight division. He is currently on a 6 fight win streak in the UFC. He most recently fought Davi Ramos at UFC 242 which he won by unanimous decision.

Gregor Gillespie (6-1 UFC, 13-1 overall) last fought at UFC 244 in November of 2019. He lost to Kevin Lee via KO. Gillespie is another fighter who has climbed up the lightweight rankings and is currently the 9th ranked lightweight according to the UFC rankings.

UFC 249 will be headlined by lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov defending his belt against Tony Ferguson. A rematch between Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade is also scheduled to take place on the card.