It would have been a simple case of title defense, had Islam Makhachev kept his word and faced Carlos Prates. Instead, he pulled out of the matchup, leaving Dana White scrambling to salvage the card—and fuming about the decision.

“It was verbally agreed to,” White insisted when a reporter asked if Makhachev had agreed to the Prates matchup—either verbally or by signing up a contract.

White’s comment centers on Makhachev’s decision to pull out of the proposed matchup against Prates at UFC 336, which is scheduled on January 30, 2027. Makhachev’s move forced the UFC to book a fight between Prates and Michael Morales for the new interim welterweight title.

Even though it’s been days since the developments took place, White could barely hide his displeasure.

“I don’t know,” he said. “I think when you get to a position where he’s (Makhachev) at and what he’s accomplished, who knows what he’s thinking or what he wants to do next, you know?

“But obviously I like when guys fight a lot. Being in the champ, you know, I don’t really expect you to fight three times a year, but twice would be nice. There’s a lot to start to do to back up the division. There are lots of guys who would like a shot at the title.”

According to White, more often than not, fighters’ decisions are influenced by monetary reasons. Anticipating regular payouts, upcoming prospects accept matchups on a regular basis. But the situation changes once they scale up. As their earnings surge, fighters tend to limit their appearances.

At the post-fight press conference for UFC 333, White reflected on Makhachev’s situation and revealed that he does not “want to fight until after Ramadan.”

White’s latest comments contrast sharply with his previous statements when he rushed to Makhachev’s defense after rumors suggested the Russian backed out of a matchup against Ilia Topuria.

“That’s not true,” White said at a press conference. “It was never Islam versus Ilia Topuria.”

The scrutiny over the Prates fight mounted, forcing Makhachev to make his stand clear.

During an interview, the welterweight champion argued that the matchup against Prates made little sense. He successfully defended his title against Ian Machado Garry, who had previously defeated Prates. According to Makhachev, entering a matchup with the Brazilian barely adds any value to his resume.

A few prominent names from the MMA world supported Makhachev.

“Islam Makhachev is right on this one, Kamaru,” Henry Cejudo said on the Pound 4 Pound podcast. “I was thinking the same thing. If I were Islam, I’d be like, ‘Dude, how come these guys don’t fight each other? Let me fight the best dude.’ Like, you know what I’m saying? He said that before.

“(Makhachev) said that before in the past, in his press conference, as a matter of fact, you know, he said, ‘How come these guys don’t fight each other?’ So it was already premeditated with Islam since the beginning, if you think about it. I agree with Islam. As a champion, you want the number one contenders to fight each other.”

It is not the first time that Makhachev imposed such a demand on the challengers.

No shortcuts to Islam Makhachev

Three years ago, after stopping Alexander Volkanovski in the first round of their rematch at UFC 294, Makhachev addressed the situation surrounding his next title defense.

At the time, Justin Gaethje and Charles Oliveira emerged as frontrunners for a shot at his lightweight title.

Makhachev clarified that Gaethje and Oliveira should first fight among themselves before challenging him. As it turned out, losses in their subsequent bouts for both Gaethje and Oliveira made Makhachev’s argument for top-tier contenders having to clear out the division before earning a title shot all the more compelling.

Makhachev is also not the only champion to have taken such a definitive position.

George St-Pierre, Jon Jones, and Amanda Nunes reportedly made it clear that they expect fighters to reach their level before deserving an opportunity to challenge them.