Brendan Schaub says Islam Makhachev 'champs of that religion' rant was taken out of context

Former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub is facing a wave of criticism after saying the UFC "can't have champs of that religion" while ranting about welterweight champion Islam Makhachev's inactivity. On Thursday, October 29, Schaub responded on X, saying his comments had been "taken out of context" and that religion "isn't the point".

What Schaub said

Schaub made the remarks on his Big Brown Breakdown show while reacting to the news that Makhachev will not defend his title at UFC 336 in Toronto on January 30. A clip was posted early on October 29 by the MMA account Happy Punch, which framed it as Schaub "arguing the UFC can't have Muslim champions", and the post quickly drew a heavy response.

"It was pretty much cemented, signed, done deal, Islam was supposed to fight Carlos Prates in Toronto, January 30. And then all of a sudden, Islam goes, 'Nope, Ramadan, I'm not gonna fight him,'" Schaub said, according to Bloody Elbow's transcription.

He added that the UFC "should've stripped" Makhachev but "still bend the knee to him", and continued: "This is why you've got to be careful of crowning new champs when they're from that origin... They fight once a year, it's not enough. This is a huge issue, it's the elephant in the room, this is why you can't have champs of that religion, you can't run a business off it."

The response

As criticism mounted in the replies, Schaub posted a reply on X on Thursday morning.

"Oh boy. Here we go. This was a much larger point taken out of context. Religion isn't the point, it could be a number of reason a fighters isn't active. My point was you can't build stars if they're not active. That's it. My whole 'rant' was dumb cause Islam is already a superstar," Schaub wrote.

Later that day he went further in another post: "MMA media took my Islam being inactive take way out of context. Race, religion, and politics have zero to do with this... We good?"

He also released a full Big Brown Breakdown episode on the controversy, titled "WAY OFF! This is NOT an APOLOGY!". Its description says it covers his frustration with inactive UFC champions, scheduling around Ramadan and comparisons with Georges St-Pierre. Schaub has not withdrawn the original wording. CageOracle reported that it had found no response from Makhachev, his team or the UFC as of Thursday.

The Makhachev situation

The comments come in the middle of a heated debate over the welterweight title. During the UFC 333 broadcast on October 24, the UFC announced that Carlos Prates will face Michael Morales for the interim welterweight title in the UFC 336 co-main event at Scotiabank Arena, instead of Prates challenging Makhachev.

The reasons for that have been given differently. Dana White said after UFC 333 that Makhachev "was slated for January, and then said 'I don't want to fight until after Ramadan'", adding: "You can't hold up divisions like this." Makhachev himself has said he wants Prates and Morales to prove who the real challenger is, saying: "Just let them fight, and we will figure out who's the real challenger."

Critics of Schaub's take have also pointed to the numbers. Bloody Elbow noted that since 2020 Makhachev has fought as many times as Alexander Volkanovski, who is widely praised as one of the most active champions in the sport.

Makhachev is not expected back before spring 2027, and his next title defence has not been scheduled. Prates vs Morales will crown an interim champion in the meantime.