The UFC lightweight division has a new king.
Islam Makhachev submitted Charles Oliveira in the second round of the UFC 280 main event to earn the vacant 155-pound title.
Makhachev dropped the Brazilian with a clean right punch before locking in an arm triangle. The Russian dominated the opening stanza, taking Oliveira down several times and dishing out some hard shots from top position.
The new champion immediately turned his attention to a superfight against featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski. After Makhachev called for his first defense to come in Australia at UFC 284 on Feb. 12, Volkanovski entered the Octagon to accept the challenge.
UFC president Dana White confirmed in his post-event presser that the promotion will look to book the Makhachev-Volkanovski bout, according to MMAFighting's Shaheen Al-Shatti.
Makhachev appeared destined for the UFC title ever since Khabib Nurmagomedov, his longtime friend and training partner, retired as champion in October 2020. He won 10 fights in a row ahead of UFC 280 after dropping his second bout inside the Octagon.
The defeat ends Oliveira's magical 11-win run, in which he claimed the title vacated by Nurmagomedov against Michael Chandler in May 2021 before defending his belt against Dustin Poirier later that year.
He was stripped of his championship after missing weight for a bout against Justin Gaethje in May but earned this shot at redemption with a first-round submission in that fight.
