Kamaru Usman considers Islam Makhachev a friend, even though they might be on a collision course.
Makhachev dethroned Jack Della Maddalena via a dominant decision to win the welterweight title at UFC 322 last weekend. Makhachev has subsequently expressed interest in defending his title against Usman rather than new contenders such as Carlos Prates and Michael Morales. Usman is happy to oblige, although he admittedly likes Makhachev and his entire team. Both parties are also close to Rizwan Magomedov and Ali Abdelaziz from Dominance MMA, their common management team.