The hype is already starting to intensify around a massive super fight between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski for the lightweight strap.

However, before the fight can even happen, contracts and a venue have to be agreed upon. Volkanovski has had a tremendous run as featherweight champion, beating the likes of Max Holloway three times, Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung, to name a few. For Makhachev, he finally became a household name after claiming the vacant lightweight title from ex-champion, Charles Oliveira.

The banter has already begun between the two combatants over Twitter, as the fight is expected to take place around the first quarter of 2023 in Australia.

https://twitter.com/alexvolkanovski/status/1588336027797970944?s=46&t=Ps3neGTuB0bORAdRtN-vhA

“Are you a man of your word,” Volkanovski wrote in a tweet to Makhachev Thursday. “Let’s make it happen.”

Islam Makhachev then responded with a colorful tweet of his own, essentially guaranteeing victory on fight night.

https://twitter.com/makhachevmma/status/1588469319541088256?s=46&t=rNJWYZxt2377a1ugpWikiQ

“The second I receive the paper, I will sign it. Don’t worry,” Makhachev wrote in a reply to the featherweight champion.

This wouldn’t be the first time that a big weight division crossover fight would take place in the UFC. Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier, Conor McGregor vs. Eddie Alvarez and Amanda Nunes vs. Valentina Shevchenko are just a few recent examples that saw either unification implications or two champions from different weight classes face one another.

Both men are ranked in the top-five of the UFC’s pound-for-pound rankings, as Makhachev comes in at No. 5, while Volkanovski takes the top spot, making it one of the highest-ranked fights in recent memory.

How will the fight play out? And what will it mean for the winner and the loser? Let us know your thoughts in the comments, Penn Nation, as the fight will be here likely sooner than you think.

UFC 284, a potentially historic night in the first quarter of 2023.