📝 Islam Makhachev's Masterpiece

Islam Makhachev put a stamp on his resume last night. After 25 minutes he was perfect in his takedown attempts and held Jack Della Maddalena to only 30 strikes total. Here he review how he made it look so easy.

Now let’s get into it.

Islam cemented himself as one of the best MMA fighters ever this weekend. At UFC 322 he pitched a shut out against the welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena (JDM).

This fight was supposed to be Islam’s trickiest test. He was fighting an excellent scrambler and better boxer riding an 18 fight winning streak. Add to that the fact that Islam would be giving up size you could easily see Islam’s path to failure.

Now those concerns seem silly. Islam left the cage with a 100% takedown accuracy, just under a 75% striking accuracy, and nearly 20 minutes of control time.

Here we’re going to go through everything Islam did that made him look so dominant. We’re starting where the fight does, on the feet.

Islam might have been giving up some weight in this fight. But the speed advantage he seems to have gained is almost unbelievable. Look at how quick he gets in on Maddalena’s hips below.

Part of why Islam’s takedowns looked so fast is because he shot in between JDM’s movements. When the champion would step or cover up, Islam was already in on a takedown attempt.

JDM never got a moment to sprawl or fight Islam’s grip. And as the fight wore on, Islam would end in tighter and tighter positions after his takedowns.

And after Islam got JDM down, he never got back up.

Islam spent just under 4 minutes of every 5 minute round on top of JDM. And it’s not like JDM was just laying there. He was framing, fighting for under hooks, and even trying to reach up for octopus guard and buggy chokes.

Islam had an answer for all of it.

Islam has the best top half in MMA. Probably ever. And it’s the cornerstone of his entire top game for good reasons.

When you’re in top half you’re sitting on your opponent’s leg, meaning one of their hips is pinned, and you have your hands free to punch, hand fight, and hunt for submissions. Below we’re going to go through some specific grips and positions Islam used to thwart JDM’s attempts to make space.

Later in the fight Islam used a grip you see often in BJJ but hardly ever in MMA to pin JDM’s shoulders.

Wrist pinning is a simple way to pin your opponent to the mat from further distances so you can maintain control while staying mobile.

JDM is known for weird scrambling to get up from bottom. His jiujitsu coach, Craig Jones, is one of the most creative minds in no gi grappling. Many thought Jones would give JDM unique insight to get up from underneath JDM.

It’s true we saw JDM trying to implement unorthodox techniques like octopus guard to get up, but Islam shut it down instantly.

Octopus guard is so powerful because it allows the bottom player to gain head height quickly from half guard and side control so they can move their legs, sweep, and stand up. If the top player only reaches back for cross faces, they can disrupt their own base and lose position. By using the cross face arm to also disrupt JDM’s base while keeping his head over JDM’s, Islam was able to stop octopus guard before it ever became a threat.

Now that we understand how Islam was pinning JDM, let’s look at how he advanced position.

JDM went back to a similar maneuver later in the fight but Islam was much tighter the second time around.

And here we see the most frustrating part of fighting Islam on the floor. Even when you shake him off your back, he’ll just slide into half guard to start his pressuring and passing all over again.

In 1967, the American psychologist Martin Seligman conducted research with the goal of better understanding depression and its related issues. Seligman rigged dogs up to harnesses to see how they responded to adverse stimuli over time.

Seligman found that dogs who were subjected to electrical shocks and unable to move away could be “taught” that there was nothing they could do avoid adverse stimuli. Eventually they would just lie down and accept their pain.

Seligman showed the world that animals could learn helplessness and effectively lose their sense of an ability to reach a goal.

That’s what the fight between Islam Makhachev and Jack Della Maddalena looked like.

In the first round, JDM was quick and active to move. It didn’t amount to much, but that didn’t stop him from fighting back.

After the third, JDM moved carefully, grimaced, and hardly tried to fight up from the bottom. Islam taught JDM that every move he could make, every technique he drilled, would, at best, only delay the inevitable. If anything it was more likely to facilitate further offense from Islam.

Now we have to wonder, who’s next?

Islam’s manager Ali Abdelaziz says they want Kamaru Usman. With Usman’s age, that fight doesn’t interest me. But if he pulled it out, Islam would shoot into the upper echelon of all time greats.

It seems like the world still wants Ilia Topuria to take on Islam. Ilia can probably knock out anyone in whatever weight class he fights at. But I can’t see the former featherweight champion getting past Islam’s size advantage if they meet.

There’s always the boogeyman lurking in the background. Islam could take on Shavkat Rakhmonov. Shavkat can certainly hurt Islam at range and in the clinch. But he doesn’t have the best open space wrestling. I’m not sure if he’ll be able to stop Islam’s shots.

If Ian Garry wins his next fight, he could skip the line and take a crack at Islam. He has the potential to pick at Islam, slow the fight down, and score points. But I don’t see him doing much more than hoping to squeak out a decision.

I guess the better question is, how big will the legend of Islam Makhachev going to get?

Last week I put out a thorough study of Islam Makhachev’s grappling. Takedowns, passes, pins, and why his game works so well together.

A lot of what was written was highlighted in this fight, particularly with how his pinning and passing forms a closed loop on the ground. Everything Islam does plays directly into and out of his top half game.

When Islam takes people down he lands in top half. Then he’ll threaten arm triangles and kimuras. If his opponent defends, he passes to mount or back mount. And when they get inches back he happily slides back into half guard to start the cycle all over again.