Islam Makhachev will not be back in action until mid-2027 and when he does return the UFC welterweight champion will only have a few fights left.

Many expected Makhachev to defend his UFC welterweight title against knockout ace Carlos Prates at UFC 336 this coming January, but the pound-for-pound king simply wasn’t going to be ready. With Makhachev sidelined for the time being, UFC matchmakers booked an interim title fight between Prates and fellow top contender Michael Morales to co-headline UFC 336. The winner is expected to unify the belt with Makhachev some time after Ramadan.

Makhachev, who has only fought four times over the past three years, is eager to see who the more deserving contender is between Prates and Morales. Of course, that may not be the only reason why Makhachev postponed his UFC 336 title defense. The UFC superstar could be nursing an injury or simply buying his time to play out the final few fights of his storied career.

The latter seems more likely given Makhachev’s social media post on Friday. The UFC champion confirmed his next fight is “one of the last in my career,” meaning he aims to make it count. Fighting Prates in January would have been a solid choice to do just that, but Makhachev has earned the right to wait if he wants to. Just don’t expect Makhachev to fight too many times after his next walk to the Octagon.

“My next fight is one of the last in my career,” said Makhachev via X.

“They say Prates is too dangerous for me and Morales is too good for me.

“So I want to face the best of them and prove to the world once again who is the best in world.”