Islam Makhachev is now the number two ranked male fighter in the UFC after the pound-for-pound rankings were updated.
It was long since known for the last few years that Islam Makhachev was special.
While the spotlight may have gone on Khabib Nurmagomedov in his own run-up to the title, âThe Eagleâ was able to redirect that shine onto Islam when he retired back in 2020.
Since then, itâs been down to Makhachev to try and prove himself as an elite lightweight in his own right.
Read more: UFC: All 12 lightweight champions ranked
He went on to beat just about everyone the UFC put in front of him and at UFC 280 last month, he made his hard work count by submitting Charles Oliveira to become the new UFC lightweight champion.
In many ways he made it look easy and in others, he confirmed to the watching world that heâd always been âthat guyâ at 155 pounds.
The new sheriff in town
The Ultimate Fighting Championship knew the potential he had and upon dethroning âDo Bronxâ, the promotionâs chosen media members opted to shift the star from Dagestan all the way up to the top three of the menâs pound-for-pound rankings.
Some donât put a whole lot of stock into the rankings but itâs certainly something the UFC values, as it can always serve as a better selling point for certain fights on both a PPV and a standard card.
Now, though, in the wake of what he achieved at UFC 280, Makhachev has received another boost by leaping up to 2nd place - with just Alexander Volkanovski ahead of him.
In all likelihood, this move was done as a reaction to Israel Adesanya losing his UFC middleweight championship to Alex Pereira at UFC 281.
There can only be one
For perhaps the first time in UFC history, we will get to see the two best ârankedâ male fighters square off when the company returns to Australia in February 2023.
When they touch down in Perth, the scheduled main event will pit Alexander Volkanovski against Islam Makhachev with the UFC lightweight title on the line.
Read more: Khabib Nurmagomedov: Volkanovski 'tougher' for Makhachev than Oliveira
Volkanovski currently holds the gold at 145 pounds but with no clear challenges at featherweight, heâs decided to switch things up.
Makhachev, meanwhile, knows what it could do for his legacy if he prevents âThe Greatâ from capturing a second belt.