Islam Makhachev retained his world title in a hard-fought battle in Australia Islam Makhachev reacts after his victory over Alexander Volkanovski during the UFC 284 event on February 12, 2023 in Australia © Getty Images / Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images Russian champion Islam Makhachev defended his UFC lightweight title early on Sunday in an intense, five-round battle against hometown favorite Alex Volkanovski in Perth, Australia in the UFC 284 headliner. Makhachev, the fearsome Dagestani grappler, entered the cage as the reigning 155lb champion, but faced a stern challenge from the Australian, who was moving up from the featherweight (145lb) division he has dominated in a bid to become the UFC’s latest two-division titleholder. But after a back-and-forth contest which saw both men tested on their feet and on the ground, it was Makhachev’s persistent aggression and suffocating grappling which proved enough to earn a unanimous decision victory on the judges’ scorecards. The full #UFC284 main event scorecards 📝 pic.twitter.com/zCx1YmqcFb Thank you Alex. It was a very good fightI need some tough fights. I have to improve. I [thought] he’s going to be easy on the ground but this guy improved a lot. The victory will almost certainly see Makhachev succeed Volkanovski at the summit of the UFC’s official pound-for-pound rankings to determine the world’s best fighter across all weight classes when the latest list is issued on Monday. It was the first time in the UFC’s 30-year history that the fight league’s top two ranked pound-for-pound fighters fought in the Octagon. I show why I’m number oneThey have to improve more. You like or you don’t like but I am the best fighter in the world right now Opponents for 25 minutesPartners in history forever 👏 #UFC284pic.twitter.com/4wICW3XpTO Volkanovski, who was fighting in front of a fiercely partisan crowd Down Under, added his congratulations to Makhachev afterwards. Obviously a lot of people are going to be happy with that because they never gave me a chanceI knew I prepared properly, it was a fun fight. Congrats to Islam
