UFC welterweight champion Islam Makhachev has taken a look ahead to the future and contemplated when he may return to the cage after his big win at UFC 330.

In the main event of UFC 330, Islam Makhachev was able to grind out a nice victory over Ian Machado Garry to ensure he remained the king of the welterweight division. Outside of dropping the Irishman, it wasn’t the prettiest performance he has ever produced – but it didn’t need to be. Machado Garry is a difficult fighter to look good against, but Islam still managed to dig deep and find the win that keeps him top of the pound for pound list.

Islam Makhachev’s future isn’t guaranteed, as is the case for any fighter in the UFC. At this stage, fans and pundits are just lucky to be able to get the chance to watch him compete. If he does decide to make a comeback, there are plenty of interesting options out there for him, including big, dynamic strikers such as Carlos Prates and Michael Morales.

In his post-fight press conference appearance, Islam Makhachev had the following to say about when he would next like to fight.

“I feel happy,” Makhachev told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference at Xfinity Mobile Arena. “… Hard fight. It was good fight, good opponent. Now, it’s no more Anderson Silva. It’s Islam Makhachev’s record. I like this.”

“Bro, we have to fight before Ramadan – 100 percent,” Makhachev said. “Of course, January or before end of the year, I have to fight. Because I am not like 20-something. I am 34 years old. I have to fight as soon as possible because I’m not cutting much weight. I don’t have any big injuries. I will maybe double-check my nose. That’s it.”

“We don’t talk about this, but we’re still the best team in the world,” Makhachev said. “… We have a lot of killers in the gym who are watching our fights, who are watching our careers, and still training every day. Abdulmanap’s legacy still growing. Too many fighters are going to come from our gym.” Quotes via MMA Junkie

Makhachev has already established himself as one of the greatest fighters in UFC history courtesy of him breaking Anderson Silva’s consecutive wins record in the promotion. Now, it’s all about how much further he wants to go to really put it beyond a shadow of a doubt for even his biggest critics.