On August 16, Islam Makhachev defeated Irishman Ian Garry and defended his UFC welterweight title. The Russian is the leader of the promotion's pound-for-pound rankings and one of the highest-paid fighters in the league.

In this article, we tell you about the future champion's first car. In 2009, Makhachev bought a used "Niva", and the car cost him about 100 thousand rubles.

At that time, the 18-year-old fighter lived in Khushet and commuted to studies and training with two transfers. Therefore, the requirements for the car were simple: the main thing was that it allowed him not to travel by minibuses. His brother helped with money, and the rest of the amount was collected together.

Why "Niva"?

The choice for Dagestan was quite practical. The classic three-door SUV of the VAZ-2121 family received permanent 4x4 all-wheel drive, a two-stage transfer case, and a lockable center differential.

With a wheelbase of only 2200 mm and a ground clearance of about 220 mm, the car felt good where ordinary passenger cars quickly gave up.

At the same time, the "Niva" remained relatively compact: length - 3720 mm, width - 1680 mm. The curb weight of the classic version was about 1.2 tons.

The car was equipped with a gasoline four-cylinder engine with a volume of 1.58 liters and a power of about 80 hp. The maximum torque reached 116 N·m. The engine worked together with a manual gearbox, and all-wheel drive allowed realizing modest power off-road.

In the mountains - there is no better car

The maximum speed was about 132 km/h, acceleration to 100 km/h took about 23 seconds. But the car could overcome climbs up to 30°, and the ground clearance and short wheelbase helped on broken roads.

It turns out to be a rather symbolic first car for the future champion: only about 80 hp, manual transmission, permanent all-wheel drive, and no frills. For about 100 thousand rubles, it solved the main task of young Makhachev - it took him to the university and training where an ordinary passenger car would have had a much harder time.