Does Alexander Volkanovski have a reach advantage over Islam Makhachev despite being considerably shorter?

Alexander Volkanovski stands at 5-foot-6 (168 cm), considerably shorter — four inches shorter, to be specific — than the lightweight champion Islam Makhachev. Despite giving up size in terms of height, the featherweight champion more than makes up for it with his reach.

'The Great' has a reach of 71.5 inches, which is an inch-and-a-half more than Makhachev's. Volkanovski's reach advantage could provide for some interesting scenarios in the striking exchanges.

Islam Makhachev stands at 5-10 (178 cm) and has a reach of 70.5 inches. Makhachev has a counter-heavy style of striking, choosing to pick his shots rather than engage in all-out brawls. One doesn't need to mention his patented Dagestani style of wrestling, made popular by his former teammate and coach Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Alexander Volkanovski is a sharp striker and is the kind of guy who keeps evolving, evident through each of his fights. 'The Great' has shown dominance inside the octagon and a continued evolution of his skills, made rampantly obvious in his trilogy bouts with Max Holloway (including the fights in between). He showed top-notch grappling defense in the fight against Brian Ortega at UFC 266.

UFC 284 will feature lightweight champion and No.2-p4p fighter Islam Makhachev taking on the featherweight champion and No.1-p4p fighter Alexander Volkanovksi in the main event of UFC 284. The event will take place at the RAC arena in Perth, Australia, and will feature Yair Rodriguez vs. Josh Emmett for the interim featherweight title in the co-main event.

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Does a possible win over Alexander Volkanovski mean that Islam Makhachev is in the GOAT conversation?

How many title fights does it take for a fighter to enter the 'greatest of all time' list? Will a fighter have to be undefeated to make that list? Does a long and dominant win-streak count? What are the variables that go into considering someone as the so-called 'GOAT' of MMA?

Islam Makhachev stands to achieve greatness should he beat Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284. Not only does he keep his lightweight belt with the win, he also earns the coveted No.1 spot on the men's pound-for-pound list in the UFC. That, technically, means that he's the best fighter in the world.

But does being the No.1-ranked fighter on the pound-for-pound list mean that you're the greatest of all time? The difference between being the pound-for-pound best and the 'GOAT' is relativity in terms of time.

That is probably why when people talk about the 'greatest of all time', names like Georges St-Pierre, Anderson Silva, Fedor Emelianenko and Jon Jones are immediately brought up. What's more intriguing is that some of these fighters are not even actively competing.

The pound-for-pound rankings are shorter-term, however, they are more definitive and easily calculable.

So, the question remains — will Islam Makhachev enter the 'GOAT' conversation with a win over Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284? Probably not — but with a few more wins in the near future, possibly yes.