"I watched the fight, it was a good fight. I was rooting for Dustin because he's a real gangster. But the champ turned out to be a tough guy. Islam dug deep, he dominated. Not as dominant as Khabib. Because if Nurmagomedov had a takedown, you didn't go up again. But Islam is better than Khabib in the standup, he's more diverse. The champion dug deep and showed what kind of dough he is made of," said Perez in an interview with James Lynch.
Recall, Makhachev beat Puryear by choke in the fifth round.