UFC 284 LIVE: Follow all the action on main card, with Alexander Volkanovski aiming for double champ status in huge Islam Makhachev showdown on home turf in Perth

Follow Sportsmail’s live blog for Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284, as well as full undercard coverage. 

Host commentator

‘All I could think was ‘this guy hits hard’, it was his speed more than anything’, says Crute. 

Menefield says: ‘Me and him, let’s do it again!’

Goddard deducts a point from Menefield for grabbing the fence – how big could that be? Crute then empties the tank in trying for a takedown, securing it and landing on top, where he can kill clock and spend time in the ascendancy. He moves to mount before being shaken to side control. Eventually Menefield stands up but it looks as though Crute has done enough to grind it out. 

How much punishment can Crute take? Marc Goddard allows him to stay in the fight after taking some ridiculous shots. He’s stumbling, bloodied and exhausted but manages to tie up Menefield to recover for a while. He then secures a takedown and locks in a choke late in the round before the clock robs him of the chance to see it through. 

Crute eats some early artillery from Menefield and wisely goes for a takedown, which he secures. He then transitions to a guillotine attempt that looks incredibly tight but the American pops his head out. He then turns the tide, wobbling Crute and spending the remainder of the round landing heavy ground and pound, almost finishing him at the end. Great opener. 

The crowd give a great reaction to Crute, who looks a picture of focus as he strolls out to the octagon. The home fighter is a narrow favourite and is almost a decade younger than his light-heavyweight opponent tonight at 26. He’s lost his last two against Anthony Smith and Jamahal Hill so is desperate to bounce back. 

Jimmy Crute vs Alonzo Menefield

Justin Tafa vs Parker Porter

Jack Della Maddalena vs Randy Brown

Yair Rodriguez vs Josh Emmett

Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski

‘I’ve levelled up a lot since I was released by the UFC, thank you to the crowd here in Australia!’ The 29-year-old has suffered with injuries and took this on late notice but more than made it count. 

Pedro takes some heavy shots late in the round and the most eye-catching work was done by Bukauskas. Will it be enough for the judges to score it in his favour or will the home fighter get his hand raised?

Pedro has his work cut out here and this is a back-and-forth bruiser of a fight. Lithuanian-British Bukauskas is giving him a tough time and his corner tells him to go out and show the UFC what he’s made of in this third and final round. 

A fast start for Pedro and he forces a takedown, attempting to move to mount but is well blocked off. Bukauskas then finds a way back to his feet and finishes the round stronger, buzzing him in the last 10 seconds and Pedro is breathing heavily. 

The powerful Australian light-heavyweight is the featured pre-lim tonight, taking on Modestas Bukauskas. Pedro is enjoying a resurgence following his long lay-off, winning twice last year after four years out of the cage. 

Volkanovski is an incredible fighter but many think he’s bitten off more than he can chew with Makhachev. So without huge KO power behind him, how can he beat the formidable Russian in the main event tonight?

He put the squeeze on him! 💪@culibaomma taps out Melsik Baghdasaryan! 👋#UFC284 pic.twitter.com/BIDgaRNBRq

‘It was pretty bad, (taking a spinning wheel kick to the balls), so I had to check they were still there! This is a dream come true, thanks for having me, that was bonus worthy, give me my money.’

The Aussies have another victor, this time Joshua Culibao is the one bringing the crowd to their feet with a sensational sub! He just about clings to the back of Baghdasaryan before locking in the choke, tweaking it slightly to a better position and forcing a tap. 

"There's this lad that thinks he can't get knocked out because of where he's from. Paddy Pimblett, get in the cage with me and I'll put that Scouser chin to the test, son!"@jamie_mullarkey calls out Paddy the Baddy! 😤#UFC284 pic.twitter.com/tXvNgmuyxv

In the history of pay-per-view cards, where will tonight rank? Dana White hit back at Makhachev earlier in the week after the Russian said not enough had been done to promote it. The UFC president said it was trending to be one of the top five fights in company history… that seems unlikely given the pulling power of Volkanovski and Makhachev in comparison to McGregor but we’ll find out in the weeks to come. 

GONE IN 60 SECONDS! ⏱️

Kleydson Rodrigues wasted no time getting the finish! 💥#UFC284 pic.twitter.com/AHo1YUCaUS

Watch out for this guy… he’s seriously talented. The Brazilian just finished Shannon Ross in the first round of their flyweight clash with some nasty body shots followed by a barrage that forced the ref to step in. 

Pound for pound wafflers

Aussie Jamie Mullarkey kicks off the pre-lims with a win over three rounds to get the crowd going, before calling out ‘The Baddy’. He says: ‘I am happy with that, I kept my cool, only got hit when I lost concentration. Australia! The louder you cheer, the harder we go! Give it up for him on enemy territory on debut fighting me. Paddy Pimblett, let’s put that chin to the test.’

Volkanovski has looked so assured all week, speaking to Makhachev at the face-offs and ceremonial events, looking for any edge he might find. In fairness, Makhachev doesn’t look at all rattled by it and there’s been an undercurrent of respect between both fighters. 

𝗜𝘀𝗹𝗮𝗺 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘃 🆚 𝗔𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝗸𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘃𝘀𝗸𝗶 𝗶𝘀 𝗢𝗡! 🏆#UFC284 | Saturday | BT Sport 1pic.twitter.com/baWbOzIdh1

Perth is playing host tonight, specifically RAC Arena, and the partisan crowd will be fully behind their man in the main event later. Makhachev is comfortable being in enemy territory but without Khabib in his corner, if things start to go against him, it will be a real test of his mettle. Back in 2016, Holly Holm shocked the world with her KO of Ronda Rousey in Australia, will there be another iconic moment Down Under tonight? 

The who, the when, the where… the what time. We’ve got it all covered.

It’s the Super Bowl tomorrow so you might as well get your sleep pattern shifted in advance and stay up for what is set to be an incredible night of fights. 

Can Alexander Volkanovski defy the odds and keep his pound-for-pound status, while dethroning Islam Makhachev? Stay tuned in the hours ahead as we build up to the biggest fight of the year so far with a packed pre-lim and main card line-up. 

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