This Saturday night sees the UFC head to Australia, with Perth playing host to UFC 284: Makhachev vs Volkanovski. The main event will be a riveting title fight, with Australia’s star, Alexander Volkanovski, coming up against Islam Makhachev for the UFC Lightweight Championship.
Volkanovski will need all the crowd support he can get here. While the Aussie is undefeated in the UFC and the reigning UFC Featherweight Champion, stepping up a weight class to take on Makhachev will be no easy task. Can the 34-year-old give his home crowd something to cheer about?
We break down both fighters’ chances as well as the best bets to make on this clash ahead of Saturday night’s big fight. For those who know the result even without our assistance.
| Event: | UFC 284 Main Event, for Lightweight title |
| Venue: | RAC Arena, Perth, Western Australia, Australia |
| Date: | February 11th, 2023 from 6:00 PM EST |
Despite having a combined 50 professional mixed martial arts fights between them, this will be the first meeting between Makhachev and Volkanovski.
Here’s a quick overview of the bookmakers’ winner odds in this main event ahead of Saturday night’s fight for those who want to bet on UFC online:
Sportsbooks have this lightweight title fight heavily in favor of Islam Makhachev, with the Russian ahead by 1.25 (1/4) to Alexander Volkanovski’s 4.00 (3/1).
Many sportsIn-play modeLive streaming25+ sportsSuperb bonusesEasy to useVIP programLive gamesMany bonusesMany bonuses24/7 supportMobile appsLive bettingMany sportsFast payoutsRussia’s Islam Makhachev is in excellent form as the current UFC Lightweight Champion. Having debuted as a professional fighter in 2010, Makhavchev’s only career loss came in 2015, when he lost his second UFC fight to Adriano Martins. Since then, he’s been undefeated, building an overall record of 23-1-0. His most recent fight was a submission win over Charles Oliveira in late 2022, the fifth submission he’s gained in a row.
One of the clear points of difference between Makhachev and Volkanovski is size, which favors Makhachev. Volkanovski is stepping up a weight class to fight this match, meaning that his opponent is naturally larger. Add to this the fact that the Russian is a ruthless grappler and will have the advantage on the mat, and this is more than likely to be a fight Makhachev wants to fight on the ground.
Alexander Volkanovski is also in excellent form and is the reigning UFC Featherweight Champion. The Australian is undefeated in the UFC, with an overall record of 25-1-0 since he debuted in 2012. The 34-year-old’s only spot on his professional record came a decade ago in his fourth-ever fight, losing to Corey Nelson. Most recently, Volkanovski defeated Max Holloway by unanimous decision – the third points win he’s gained over the American.
Both men are complete fighters, but Volkanovski has to be given a slight edge in striking. The Australian is excellent at using feints and leg strikes to get his opponents off balance before driving them across the Octagon with aggression and combinations. While Volkanovski can hold his own anywhere with Makhachev, he’ll be eager to do more striking than grappling with the Russian.
For those who fancy placing a wager on this match, MMA betting sites in 2023 have plenty of different betting markets to choose from. Here are our top Makhachev vs Volkanovski predictions:
This should be a hard-fought encounter; however, there’s a reason the bookies have Makhachev as the heavy favorite here. The Russian is simply bigger, and more adept on the mat and in tight than Volkanovski is. The 31-year-old has won his last five fights in a row by submission, and we say he will make it six here in Australia.
Makhachev has significantly improved his striking and will likely leverage this initially, going toe to toe with Volkanovski before pouncing on an opportunity for the takedown. From here, his hip control and strength should lead to a submission.
Across his 24 professional fights, Makhachev has finished nine fights in the first round. Two of his past three fights – against quality opposition – have been first-round finishes. We say there’s a good chance Makhachev could make it ten career first-round finishes this weekend.
While a first-round finish seems like a one-sided result, we believe this will be an incredibly tight fight. However, Volkanovski will know that he’s at a disadvantage being the smaller man and will have to do something extra. This will put the Aussie under pressure, potentially creating an early opening for Makhachev to punish.
Volkanovski knocks out about half of the opponents that step into the ring with him. While the Australian has only done this once in the past four years, it was an impressive knockout over Chan Sung Jung last year. It creates the generous paying by new Aussie bookmakers for this outcome and makes it attractive enough.
If ever there was a time for Volkanovski to add to his knockout tally, it’s in Perth this weekend. The Aussie knows he’ll want to avoid grappling with Makhachev and holds an advantage in striking. Expect him to look to leverage this and swing hard from the get-go. It may not work, but if it does, it should result in this fight ending early.
Saturday night in Australia should produce one of the fights of the year, with two current UFC champions squaring off against each other. We say the incumbent UFC Lightweight Champion, Islam Makhachev, has the edge here and should win this one by submission, according to the most logical MMA predictions & tips. However, expect this to be a hard-fought entertaining match between two men at the peak of their careers, regardless of the result.
