UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski gave lightweight champion Islam Makhachev everything he had in his attempt at becoming a double champion on Saturday at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia.
The new world P4P #1 and NOBODY can take that away from @MakhachevMMA 💪 #UFC284 pic.twitter.com/FLoq82H05E
— UFC (@ufc) February 12, 2023
It wasn’t enough, and Makhachev won a unanimous decision with two judges scoring the fight 48-47 and the other 49-46. In losing his shot at champ-champ, Volkanovski also lost his mythical status as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
How did you have it scored? 📝 #UFC284
(h/t @UFCNews) pic.twitter.com/peFQMmLiW8
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 12, 2023
Makhachev, who was a -375 favorite at BetMGM ahead of the fight, is now 24-1 and is riding a 12-fight winning streak. Volkanovski’s 22-fight win streak comes to an end and his record now stands at 25-2.
In the co-main event, Yair Rodriguez used a slick submission of Josh Emmett to win the interim featherweight title and become the second Mexican-born fighter to become a UFC champion this year. Brandon Moreno won the flyweight title at UFC 283 in January.
