Ariel Helwani disagrees with top heavyweight saying Alex Volkanovski beating Islam Makhachev is biggest win in UFC history

Ariel Helwani recently disagreed with UFC heavyweight contender Tom Aspinall's opinion on what Alexander Volkanovski's potential victory at UFC 284 could mean.

Aspinall took to Twitter to declare that if 'The Great' defeats Islam Makhachev this weekend, it will be the biggest win in UFC history. However, Helwani was quick to remind the heavyweight contender about several other notable wins that have happened.

The MMA journalist pointed to Matt Serra's remarkable upset win against Georges St-Pierre at UFC 69, when he KO'd the then-reigning welterweight champion. Helwani also mentioned Chris Weidman's unbelievable KO victory over Anderson Silva at UFC 162.

Aspinall tweeted the following:

"Biggest win in UFC history if VOLK wins? I think so"

Ariel Helwani replied with the following:

"Matt Serra would like a word"

"Or Weidman"

See the exchange below:

Chris Weidman's victory was special due to Anderson Silva's perceived invincibility, as 'The Spider' carried a 17-fight win streak into the contest.

Weidman and Serra's wins are both regarded as two of the biggest upsets in UFC history.

Serra in particular shocked the MMA world when he faced Georges St-Pierre after winning The Ultimate Fighter 4 Finale. 'Rush' entered the octagon as a -1300 favorite and was KO'd in the first round by the +850 underdog Serra.

To put that into perspective, Alexander Volkanovski is currently a +285 underdog and Islam Makhachev is a +400 favorite.

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Ariel Helwani on if Khabib Nurmagomedov's absence from UFC 284 will affect Islam Makhachev

Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev have been friends and training partners since childhood. Both grew up under the tutelage of Nurmagomedov's late father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov.

Following his retirement from fighting in 2020, 'The Eagle' took to coaching and successfully guided Makhachev and Usman Nurmagomedov to lightweight titles in the UFC and Bellator respectively.

However, several weeks before UFC 284, news broke that Nurmagomedov would be stepping away from MMA entirely to spend more time with his family. Having been in Makhachev's corner for his title victory over Charles Oliveira at UFC 280, there was speculation about how 'The Eagle's' absence would affect his friend this weekend.

Ariel Helwani doesn't think it will have much effect on Makhachev's preparations and stated during a recent episode of The MMA Hour:

"Honestly, I don't [think this changes anything]. It helps to have Khabib, but it feels like Islam is closer to a finished product than Umar or Usman Nurmagomedov. Those guys may suffer when he's not around. If [Makhachev] loses, it won't be because Khabib wasn't there."

Watch Ariel Helwani weigh in on the topic below: