Umar Nurmagomedov: Hunter Campbell Convinced Islam Makhachev to Vacate Title

👀😲Umar Nurmagomedov reveals Hunter Campbell came to Dagestan to convince Islam to move up so Topuria can become the champ at 155

"He [Hunter] came to see Islam, and they wanted Islam to move up. They want to make Topuria the champ at 155. They believe he can really sell… pic.twitter.com/bMOiyARPFT

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA) June 15, 2025

Umar Nurmagomedov made some stunning revelations about UFC executive Hunter Campbell’s recent visit to Dagestan.

The featherweight, lightweight and welterweight title pictures were all in a mix prior to UFC 315 last month — and Campbell was surprisingly visiting the Republic of Dagestan in Russia weeks before the event. Nurmagomedov recently revealed the purpose behind Campbell’s visit to his homeland. 

While Islam Makhachev had been eyeing a move up to welterweight for a while, he didn’t confirm the decision until Belal Muhammad was dethroned by Jack Della Maddalena at UFC 315. Meanwhile, Ilia Topuria had announced a move to lightweight and was rallying to challenge Makhachev for the title. Nurmagomedov revealed that the UFC wanted Makhachev to move up and vacate his belt to make space for Topuria at lightweight. According to Nurmagomedov, Campbell visited Dagestan to convince Makhachev to move up.

“He came to see Islam,” Nurmagomedov told Adam Zubayraev. “He’s the kind of guy who’s super locked in on his work. He’s the one who made the Khabib-Conor fight happen. From what I gathered, he’s a huge fan. He loves the sport, wants to build big fights. He flew out, and honestly I don’t even know if I’m allowed to say this… But they wanted Islam to move up. They want to make Topuria the champ at 155 [pounds]. Not because Islam wants to move up but because they want [Topuria] to be the champ there. They believe he can really sell fights.”

Topuria fights former champ Charles Oliveira for the vacant lightweight title at UFC 317 on June 28 in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Makhachev has been promised the next welterweight title shot at a yet-to-be-decided date and venue.