<p>IT’S TIME! – well almost. Before Bruce Buffer jumps on the mic and bellows those iconic words, let’s look ahead to February 12th and preview UFC 284.</p> <p>Arguably the biggest UFC event of the year, UFC 284 pits Featherweight Champion and local hero Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski against lightweight title holder Islam Makhachev.</p> <p>The headline matchup of UFC 284 is a rare champion vs champion super fight. These are the solar eclipses of the fight world and are not to be missed.</p> <p>Add in the fact that UFC 284 will be hosted Down Under, meaning Volkanovski will get the opportunity to become the UFC’s latest double champion on home soil and this is truly a card for the ages.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Despite currently being the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC, Volkanovski is a huge underdog heading into UFC 284.</p> <p>Can our homegrown hero overcome the odds and defeat lightweight lynchpin Islam Makhachev? Or will 14,000 people be leaving Perth’s RAC Arena disappointed come February 12th? Read our UFC 284 prediction below.</p>

<h3>Alexander Volkanovski</h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Background</em></strong></p> <p>Born in Wollongong, New South Wales, Alexander Volkanovski has completed a meteoric rise to cement himself as one of the most successful Australian athletes of all time.</p> <p>The one-time concreter has gone from semi-professional Rugby League player to the number one pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC.</p> <p>Starting his amateur career as a middleweight, Volk soon sized down and turned professional, winning two Australian Fighting Championships (AFC) before joining the UFC.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Career highlights and achievements</em></strong></p> <p>Volkanovski made his UFC debut on 26 November 2016 as a lightweight. He soon moved down to featherweight where he has carved out a career as one of the division’s most successful fighters.</p> <p>In December 2019, Volkanovski successfully defeated Max Holloway by unanimous decision to become the UFC Featherweight Champion.</p> <p>Since then, Volkanovski has successfully defended his title on four separate occasions.</p> <p>First he managed to hold on in a rematch against Max Holloway, winning via split decision.</p> <p>His next two defences were much more convincing. First, he beat American Brian Ortega by unanimous decision and then knocked out “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung.</p> <p>Volk’s latest fight and title defence came in July last year where he defeated Max Holloway for a third time, on this occasion by unanimous decision.</p> <p>This fight completed their trilogy and dispelled any doubts about his split decision victory over Holloway in the pair's last meeting.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Fighting style</em></strong></p> <p>Alexander Volkanovski employs a well-rounded fighting style that is heavily influenced by his formative experiences with both boxing and Greco-Roman wrestling.</p> <p>While some fighters are either a striker or a wrestler, Volkanovski is both. This versatility has served him well in his UFC career and allowed him to adapt to the style of each of his opponents.</p> <p>“The Great'' uses an orthodox stance, is 5’6” and weighs approximately 65kg. His ability to withstand serious amounts of punishment can be traced back to his days as a semi-professional Rugby League player.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Record</em></strong></p> <p>Ahead of UFC 284 Alexander Volkanovski’s record currently stands at 25-1-0.</p> <p>He has recorded 25 wins and just one loss. He has never been involved in a draw.</p> <p>He has won 12 of his fights by KO/TKO, 10 by decision and the remaining three by submission.</p> <p>The only loss of his career so far came all the way back in 2013 against fellow Aussie Corey Nelson in the AFC, he lost by TKO on that occasion.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Islam Makhachev</h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Background</em></strong></p> <p>Born in Makhachkala, Russia, Islam Makhachev has become one of the most feared lightweights in UFC history.</p> <p>A prodigy of arguably the greatest lightweight in UFC history, the undefeated Khabib Nurmagomedov, Makhachev is seen as the heir apparent to Khabib’s vacated throne.</p> <p>Islam started his mixed martial arts career in M-1 Global (one of Russia’s premier MMA competitions) before joining the UFC.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Career highlights and achievements</em></strong></p> <p>Makhachev made his UFC debut on May 24 2015 against Leo Kuntz, whom he beat via submission.</p> <p>He lost his second bout in the UFC, which proved to be the wake up call he needed, as he has not tasted defeat since.</p> <p>In October last year Makhachev successfully defeated Charles Oliveria to become the UFC Lightweight Champion, following in the footsteps of his compatriot, mentor and cornerman Khabib Nurmagomedov.</p> <p>As well as being the current Lightweight Champion, Makhachev is also the number two pound for pound fighter in the entire UFC.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Fighting style</em></strong></p> <p>A renowned wrestler, Islam is most comfortable when dragging his opponents down onto the canvas.</p> <p>He is an exponent of the Sambo style of fighting, which is a type of hybrid Russian wrestling.</p> <p>While he is known mainly for his grappling abilities, Islam can definitely throw hands when required and has knocked out around a dozen adversaries throughout his career.</p> <p>When on his feet, Makhachev employs a Southpaw stance. He weighs in at approximately 70 kg, is 5 '10 " and is 31 years of age.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Record</em></strong></p> <p>Ahead of UFC 284 Islam Makhachev’s record currently stands at 23-1-0.</p> <p>He has recorded 23 wins and like his opponent, just the one loss. He also has never drawn a fight in the UFC.</p> <p>Unsurprisingly, Makhachev has won a majority of his fights by submission.&nbsp; He has 11 wins by submission, four by TKO/KO and eight by decision.</p> <p>The only loss of his career to date came in 2015, when he was defeated by Brazilian Adrian Martins, after being knocked out in the first round.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Makhachev vs Volkanovski Final Prediction</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>There are storylines aplenty as Alexander Volkanovski prepares to fight Islam Makhachev at UFC 284.</p> <p>For starters there are two belts on the line for the Aussie contender. If he is able to defy the odds and defeat his more favoured opponent he will simultaneously hold both the Featherweight and Lightweight belts.</p> <p>Next is location. Having a card of this calibre in Australia when an Aussie is aiming to become a double-champion cannot be understated.</p> <p>Then there’s the fighters themselves, both are at the very top of their game and are statistically the two best fighters in the UFC at the moment.</p> <p>No seriously, they currently rank as the number one and two pound-for-pound fighters in the entire organisation.</p> <p>Makhachev is on an 11 fight win streak, while Volkanovski finds himself on the right side of a mind blowing 22 fight run. So, who will win?</p> <p>Such is the pedigree of both fighters one would expect this to be a dead heat, but alas that is not the case.</p> <p>Despite being the number one pound for pound fighter in the UFC, Lightweight champion, on a 22 fight winning streak and fighting on home soil, Alexander Volkanovski enters UFC 284 as a massive underdog.</p> <p>Such is the disadvantage of fighting up a weight class, Volk is expected to lose and lose badly.</p> <p>While a highly competent wrestler himself, if the Aussie wants any chance of sending the raucous home crowd happy, he will have to do everything in his power to stay off the ground.</p> <p>No one who has rolled with Makhachev on the octagon floor has ever emerged victorious.</p> <p>So, can Volk defy the odds and defeat Islam to cement his status as one of the greatest fighters in UFC history? Only time will tell.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Final prediction:</em></strong></p> <p>A valiant Volkanovski secures a historic upset win by decision, becoming the UFC’s latest double division champ in the process.</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>UFC 284 Card Details</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Main card</em></strong></p> <ul> <li>Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski – UFC lightweight title</li> <li>Yair Rodriguez vs. Josh Emmett – UFC interim featherweight title</li> <li>Justin Tafa vs. Parker Porter</li> <li>Jimmy Crute vs. Alonzo Menifield</li> <li>Randy Brown vs. Jack Della Maddalena</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><em>Preliminaries</em></strong></p> <ul> <li>Jack Jenkins vs. Don Shainis</li> <li>Joshua Culibao vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan</li> <li>Kleydson Rodrigues vs. Shannon Ross</li> <li>Loma Lookboonmee vs. Elise Reed</li> <li>Shane Young vs. Blake Bilder</li> <li>Jamie Mullarkey vs. Francisco Prado</li> <li>Zubaira Tukhugov vs. Elves Brenner</li> <li>Tyson Pedro vs. Modestas Bukauskas</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Location:</strong> Perth, Australia.</p> <p><strong>Arena:</strong> RAC Arena</p> <p><strong>Date: </strong>12&nbsp;February 2023</p> <p><strong>Start time:</strong> 11:00am AEST.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><em>Not avaliable in SA.&nbsp;</em></p>