{"id":48483,"date":"2026-08-16T10:25:46","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T05:25:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=48483"},"modified":"2026-08-16T10:25:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-16T05:25:46","slug":"islam-makhachev-now-in-ufc-record-books-thanks-to-hallmark-consistency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=48483","title":{"rendered":"Islam Makhachev now in UFC record books thanks to hallmark consistency"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div xmlns:default=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\">\n<p>Two numbers in UFC lore don\u2019t get talked about enough: 11 and 16.<\/p>\n<p>The first, in this case, points to the 11 straight successful defenses of the UFC flyweight title by the one they call \u201cMighty Mouse,\u201d Demetrious Johnson.<\/p>\n<p>And 16, that\u2019s the number of fights in a row Anderson Silva won from 2006-12, the high-water mark for sustained success from fight to fight, both on the way up and while perched atop the heap.<\/p>\n<p>Whelp, so much for 16. Islam Makhachev erased it Saturday night in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n<p>The Dagestani dynamo tallied consecutive victory No. 17 at UFC 330, defeating first-time welterweight title challenger Ian Machado Garry via unanimous decision to break a tie with Silva and strip the Hall of Famer of one helluva distinction in promotional lore.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module aligncenter\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>If consistency is key, then Makhachev (29-1, 18 finishes) is the key master.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s not a lot of smoke and mirrors to his strategy. Pressure leads to takedowns; takedowns lead to grappling dominance; grappling dominance leads to suffering.<\/p>\n<p>You know it\u2019s coming. Makhachev\u2019s opponent knows it\u2019s coming. <\/p>\n<p>You \u2013 yes,\u00a0<em>you<\/em>, the reader \u2013 do just about as good a job of stopping it as does his opponent.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><button class=\"button button--modal-trigger\" aria-label=\"Open the image in a modal.\" data-modal-image=\"40363035\"><br \/>\n\t<default:svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"icon-plus\" fill=\"#fff\" viewbox=\"0 0 1033 1000\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\"><default:path d=\"M380 364V0h273v355h380v290H653v355H380V645H0V355h380v9z\"\/><\/default:svg><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<img style=\"aspect-ratio:1.49926794;display:block\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-modal-image=\"40363035\" width=\"885\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Islam Makhachev puts Ian Machado Garry in a hold during his win at UFC 330.\" class=\"wp-image-40363035\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 8028w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=300,200&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 300w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=768,512&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 768w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=1024,683&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=1536,1024&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=2048,1365&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=600,400&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 600w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=878,585&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 878w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=744,496&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 744w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=720,480&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 720w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=576,384&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 576w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=457,305&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 457w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=440,293&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 440w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=424,282&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 424w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=389,260&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 389w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=360,240&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 360w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=340,227&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 340w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=320,213&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 320w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=314,209&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 314w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=306,204&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 306w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=280,187&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 280w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=260,174&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 260w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=246,164&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 246w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=234,156&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 234w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=195,130&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 195w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=180,120&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 180w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=171,114&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 171w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=160,107&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 160w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=144,96&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 144w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=107,71&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 107w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=93,62&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 93w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=84,56&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 84w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=60,40&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 60w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=105,70&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 105w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=81,54&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 81w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=200,133&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=231,154&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=322,215&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 322w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=662,441&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 662w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=90,60&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 90w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=120,80&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 120w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=1200,800&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=1038,692&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1038w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=87,58&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 87w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev.jpg?resize=50,33&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 885px) 100vw, 885px\"\/><figcaption>Islam Makhachev puts Ian Machado Garry in a hold during his win at UFC 330. <span class=\"credit\">Zuffa LLC<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>If Machado Garry (17-2, eight finishes) was considered to have any basic advantage in this one it was going to be from distance. That notion dissipated when left high kick from Makhachev knocked down the Irishman in the second round, blowing the frame wide open for the champ.<\/p>\n<p>At least the unsuccessful challenger can hang his hat on a more competitive effort against Makhachev than was put forth by Jack Della Maddalena in November, when the Aussie lost his belt in a noncompetitive, survival-mode decision loss. He offered intelligent resistance to Makhachev\u2019s tried-and-true offensive gameplan and even got in some third-round licks and fourth.<\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless, the belt remained around the waist of Makhachev, with scores of 49-46, 49-46 and 48-47 in his favor. <\/p>\n<p>Not all win streaks are created equal, but any that include a healthy helping of championship fights earn extra cachet. In turning aside the Irishman in Philly, Makhachev has won seven championship fights in a row: a lightweight title victory, a four title defenses, a welterweight title win and the ensuing defense.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><button class=\"button button--modal-trigger\" aria-label=\"Open the image in a modal.\" data-modal-image=\"40363042\"><br \/>\n\t<default:svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"icon-plus\" fill=\"#fff\" viewbox=\"0 0 1033 1000\" width=\"1em\" height=\"1em\"><default:path d=\"M380 364V0h273v355h380v290H653v355H380V645H0V355h380v9z\"\/><\/default:svg><br \/>\n<\/button><br \/>\n<img style=\"aspect-ratio:1.49926794;display:block\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-modal-image=\"40363042\" width=\"885\" height=\"590\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Islam Makhachev punches Ian Machado Garry during his victory at UFC 330.\" class=\"wp-image-40363042\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 5784w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=300,200&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 300w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=768,512&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 768w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=1024,683&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=1536,1024&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=2048,1365&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 2048w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=600,400&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 600w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=878,585&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 878w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=744,496&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 744w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=720,480&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 720w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=576,384&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 576w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=457,305&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 457w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=440,293&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 440w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=424,282&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 424w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=389,260&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 389w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=360,240&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 360w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=340,227&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 340w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=320,213&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 320w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=314,209&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 314w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=306,204&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 306w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=280,187&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 280w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=260,174&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 260w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=246,164&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 246w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=234,156&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 234w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=195,130&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 195w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=180,120&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 180w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=171,114&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 171w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=160,107&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 160w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=144,96&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 144w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=107,71&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 107w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=93,62&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 93w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=84,56&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 84w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=60,40&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 60w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=105,70&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 105w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=81,54&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 81w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=200,133&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=231,154&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 231w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=322,215&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 322w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=662,441&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 662w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=90,60&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 90w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=120,80&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 120w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=1200,800&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1200w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=1038,692&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 1038w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=87,58&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 87w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/Islam-Makhachev-3.jpg?resize=50,33&amp;quality=75&amp;strip=all 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 885px) 100vw, 885px\"\/><figcaption>Islam Makhachev punches Ian Machado Garry during his victory at UFC 330. <span class=\"credit\">Zuffa LLC<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Makhachev\u2019s scalps include No. 1 lightweight Charles Oliveira, No. 1 featherweight Alexander Volkanovski (twice) and No. 1 welterweight Della Maddalena. Eight times, world top-10 competition couldn\u2019t measure up. Eleven times over five years, the top 20 offered little he couldn\u2019t handle. And that doesn\u2019t even include the win over a young fellow Russian named Arman Tsarukyan, a title contender who might actually be the best lightweight on the planet today.<\/p>\n<p>Makhachev turns 35 in October, but he\u2019s shown no signs of slowing down. His cadence tends to be one or two fights annually, and a hand injury earlier this year may have been the only thing that kept him from two title defenses in 2026. Perhaps by the end of 2027, 17 will have been twice erased, with a breathtaking 19-fight win streak potentially in the offing.<\/p>\n<p>But already, Makhachev aims higher. To the two-weight champ, 20 sounds like a nice round number to shoot for, presumably some time in 2028.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the opposite of limbo. How high can he go?<\/p>\n<p>Welterweight is a minefield, as it has been since the GOAT-level reign of Georges St-Pierre well over a decade ago as the sport emerged as mainstream sport. Machado Garry ranked as merely the No. 4 man in the 170-pound pecking order of the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2026\/07\/15\/sports\/mma-rankings-july-2026-ufc-has-its-next-conor-mcgregor-in-paddy-pimblett\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NY Post Sports MMA World Rankings<\/a>. No. 1 Makhachev has yet to face No. 2 Carlos Prates or No. 3 Michael Morales. The only man to beat Machado Garry before Saturday, Shavkat Rakhmonov, would be ahead of them if not for injury-related inactivity.<\/p>\n<p>To get to 20, Makhachev almost surely will have to defeat at least two of those men, if not all three. Each would have age on his side against the champ. Not as if that mattered enough for Machado Garry, though.<\/p>\n<p>Going further just means dismantling more landmines. The field is never clear of danger.<\/p>\n<p>Whatever the number, the name next to it stays the same. And you might be able to write that one in permanent ink.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two numbers in UFC lore don\u2019t get talked about enough: 11 and 16. The first, in this case, points to the 11 straight successful defenses of the UFC flyweight title by the one they call \u201cMighty Mouse,\u201d Demetrious Johnson. And 16, that\u2019s the number of fights in a row Anderson Silva won from 2006-12, the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":48484,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/08\/newspress-collage-i2hikolrm-1786856819927.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&1786842472&w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=48483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48483\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/48484"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=48483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=48483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=48483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}