Alex Volkanovski claims he won three of five rounds, Islam Makhachev sends out provocative response

It was a main event for the ages.

Alexander Volkanovski against Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 delivered one of the most even matchups in recent memory.

The pure emotion from the crowd meant that this was already going to be an all-time classic, but the two proved exactly why they are number one and two pound-for-pound.

It was a hard-fought matchup that saw each fighter defend their opponent’s strengths and perhaps surprise each other.

By the time the buzzer at the end of the final round sounded it really did feel like the result could’ve gone either way.

Many online predicted a win for the Australian, as did UFC commentator Joe Rogan whose reaction told a lot of the story.

However, as Bruce Buffer read at the scorecards, which gave the lightweight champion the unanimous victory, it’s safe to say the Perth crowd felt robbed.

And perhaps, Volkanovski may feel hard done by as well.

While he played down the result while addressing the crowd after the fight, the Australian has since taken to Twitter to declare what he really thinks about the outcome.

He wrote on Twitter: “Just watched the fight, I definitely think I won 2,3 and 5. Surprised I didn’t get my hand raised! Let’s do the rematch, anywhere, anytime!”

A lot of the reaction online reflected a similar sentiment, especially as Volaknovski had Makhachev worried in the final moments of the fight.

The Perth crowd roared as the Australian had the top position and stood over his opponent, who for all intents and purposes looked worried.

And we’ve rarely seen Islam Makhachev worried.

As the fight came to a close there was a sense that the Aussie may have just edged it.

Well, not according to Islam, who seemingly fired back to the uproar that saw him take the number one pound-for-pound spot.

He tweeted: “Just watched the tape, and have to be fair, out of 25 minutes Volk got last 1 minute!”

That’s going to ruffle some feathers, that’s for sure.

Regardless of the result, and the varying opinions of which way this one should’ve gone, it’s fair to say a rematch should most definitely be on the cards.