Volkanovski remains UFC pound-for-pound No. 1 despite loss to Makhachev

Featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski retained his spot atop the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings despite losing to lightweight king Islam Makhachev in the main event of UFC 284 on Saturday, the promotion confirmed Tuesday.

The UFC billed the matchup between Volkanovski and Makhachev – the latter of whom entered the fight at the No. 2 spot – as a battle for pound-for-pound supremacy.

But while the Russian earned a unanimous decision victory (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) in his first title defense, Volkanovski proved to be the toughest test of Makhachev’s career, and the result caused widespread controversy online.

Makhachev said Tuesday that he wasn’t shocked that the UFC didn’t award him the top position.

Islam Makhachev isn’t surprised 😤 pic.twitter.com/qxjATC0NCb

— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) February 15, 2023

Volkanovski took the No. 1 spot on the pound-for-pound list in August following former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman’s loss to Leon Edwards. Makhachev leaped up to No. 2 after beating Charles Oliveira in October to claim the 155-pound strap.

Makhachev extended his win streak to 12 fights at UFC 284, while Volkanovski saw his 22-bout win streak – including 12 straight in the UFC – come to an end.