5 biggest winners from UFC 294: Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski 2

Despite a number of late changes, UFC 294 was still seen as one of 2023’s better cards. After a slow start, it largely delivered.

UFC 294 featured a number of excellent performances from some of the promotion’s biggest stars, and a handful of fighters came away with huge wins.

With this considered, here are the 5 biggest winners from UFC 294: Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski.

#5. Muhammad Mokaev – defeated Tim Elliott in a UFC flyweight bout

Muhammad Mokaev should climb into the top ten at 125lbs next week [Image Credit: @mokaev_muhammad on Instagram]

One fighter who can definitely expect to move into the top 10 in his weight division next week is flyweight prospect Muhammad Mokaev.

Still only 23 years old, ‘The Punisher’ extended his unbeaten record to 11-0 by submitting former title challenger Tim Elliott in the third round of what was UFC 294’s featured preliminary bout.

The fight wasn’t an easy one for Mokaev, as he found himself caught in a couple of pretty nasty submission attempts from the veteran. However, he was always able to fight free, and in the third round eventually took top position and applied an arm triangle choke to force the tapout.

How high is Mokaev’s ceiling? Based on what we’ve seen from him thus far, he could probably give all but the very top fighters at 125 pounds some serious trouble. More importantly, at his age, he’s highly likely to continue to improve, too.

Last night’s victory should net him a big fight next time out that could launch him into title contention, but for now, he should definitely be seen as one of the bigger winners in Abu Dhabi.

#4. Said Nurmagomedov – defeated Muin Gafurov in a UFC bantamweight bout

Said Nurmagomedov didn't take long to secure a win last night [Image Credit: @ufc on Instagram]

Given that Said Nurmagomedov already had two wins on his octagon ledger via guillotine choke variants, Muin Gafurov should probably have been ready to protect his neck at all costs last night.

However, he basically did the opposite. Clearly thinking that aggression was the way to go, he charged at Nurmagomedov with a flurry of strikes, allowing the Dagestani to catch his neck as he came forward.

Moments later, Nurmagomedov tightened up a choke variant, Gafurov tapped out, and the fight was over.

This win was a nice way for the Dagestani to bounce back from his March loss to Jonathan Martinez, so is he a contender at 135 pounds? It’s hard to say, as he’s unlikely to move into the top 15 with this win.

However, based on how quickly he finished his opponent last night, it is worth bumping him up the ladder into a fight with a ranked foe next time out. Add in an extra $50k for his night’s work, and he should definitely be considered one of the night’s biggest winners.

#3. Ikram Aliskerov – defeated Warlley Alves in a UFC middleweight bout

Ikram Aliskerov is likely to receive some serious hype after his win last night [Image Credit: @ufc on Instagram]

With respect to Islam Makhachev, it’s arguable that the most violent finish at UFC 294 was produced by middleweight prospect Ikram Aliskerov.

The Dagestani opened up on opponent Warlley Alves with some seriously nasty strikes, hurting him with a jab and a flying knee before dispatching him with a flurry after just over two minutes.

Sure, Alves took the fight on late notice and isn’t really a natural 185lber, but to many fans that won’t matter. Based on this knockout, and his earlier KO of Phil Hawes, it’s likely that Aliskerov will become one of the most hyped fighters on the roster.

Interestingly, it appears that the promotion already sees him as a potential star and contender. They’ve already attempted to match him with a couple of big name, ranked foes in the form of Paulo Costa and Nassourdine Imavov, although both fights obviously fell apart.

With any luck, one of those fights can be re-booked now for the near future because based on last night, Aliskerov seems like the real deal. He was a huge winner in Abu Dhabi.

#2. Khamzat Chimaev – defeated Kamaru Usman in a UFC middleweight bout

Khamzat Chimaev could be the next middleweight champion [Image Credit: @ufc on Twitter]

Given that, rightly or wrongly, his win over Kamaru Usman seems likely to lead to a shot at the UFC middleweight title, it’s hard to view Khamzat Chimaev as anything but one of last night’s biggest winners.

Initially pegged to fight Paulo Costa in what would’ve been his first true test at 185 pounds, ‘Borz’ found himself faced with somewhat of a curveball in the form of the former welterweight champion.

On one hand, Usman was taking the fight on painfully late notice, but on the other, he seemed like a stylistically trickier foe for the Chechnyan than Costa.

In the end, while his performance wasn’t flawless, Chimaev came through. He dominated Usman in the first round in the grappling department, and while he ran out of steam later on, he earned a decision.

Based on the ease in which he took Usman down last night, it’s hard to imagine that he won’t do the same to middleweight champ Sean Strickland, and if he can pull that off, he seems destined to claim the gold.

Does he warrant such a rapid title shot at 185 pounds? That’s another thing entirely, but to be quite frank, it doesn’t matter. ‘Borz’ seems destined for the top, and last night was just his next step towards that point.

#1. Islam Makhachev – defeated Alexander Volkanovski to retain the UFC lightweight title

Islam Makhachev ended his rivalry with Alexander Volkanovski in style [Image Credit: @ufc on Instagram]

There’s absolutely no debating the fact that the big winner at UFC 294 was lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev.

Not only did he turn back the challenge of Alexander Volkanovski for the second time this year, but he also ended their rivalry with an exclamation mark. Just three minutes into the opening round, the Dagestani knocked ‘Alexander the Great’ out with a head kick, a finish that nobody could’ve seen coming.

Sure, Volkanovski took the fight on short notice following the withdrawal of Charles Oliveira, but the fact that Makhachev was able to finish him in such vicious fashion was still stunning.

Prior to this, after all, not only had Volkanovski only ever been beaten by Makhachev in the octagon, but he also hadn’t been knocked out in over a decade.

There are still plenty of prospective opponents for Makhachev to defend his title against, including the likes of Justin Gaethje, Michael Chandler and Oliveira. However, right now, it’s hard to imagine any of them dethroning him.

Whether he can surpass the legacy of his mentor Khabib Nurmagomedov remains to be seen, but for now, Makhachev is on top of the world, and he was definitely the biggest winner in Abu Dhabi last night.