Henry Cejudo ranks Islam Makhachev among UFC’s top five all-time after 17th straight win

Islam Makhachev’s run of dominance in the UFC kept rolling in the Octagon on Saturday night, when he defeated Ian Machado Garry via unanimous decision in the main event of UFC 330. The victory pushed Makhachev to a 17-fight winning streak, a mark that the report describes as the longest win sequence in UFC history. It also deepened the sense that the lightweight division has been living under the same elite standard for years, with Makhachev at the center.

The result carried extra weight because of who Garry is as a fighter and matchup problem. Garry has been presented as a high-level opponent with momentum and confidence, which made Makhachev’s ability to close the night without a finish significant even on its own terms. As the fight went the distance, the decision outcome became a statement about Makhachev’s control and consistency, not just moments of impact.

Former UFC double champion Henry Cejudo, speaking in the aftermath, framed Makhachev’s position in UFC history in stronger terms. Cejudo argued that Makhachev has now entered the top five on a UFC all-time greatest list. Coming from a fighter with his own championship résumé and a reputation for blunt, legacy-focused talk, the comment functioned as more than praise, it was a benchmark for how Makhachev’s streak stacks up against other historical greats.

Cejudo’s ranking comes after what the report characterizes as Makhachev’s continued climb through competition while sustaining the longest streak in UFC history. In UFC culture, win streaks are often treated as one of the clearest ways to measure dominance, because they reduce the influence of one-off outcomes. Still, there is always a debate element in “GOAT” arguments, since divisions differ in eras, stylistic matchups vary, and competition levels are difficult to quantify in a single metric.

What is clear, though, is that Makhachev’s streak turned the question from “Can he keep winning?” into “How does he compare to everyone else who has won?” Even without agreeing on a single, definitive GOAT formula, landing in that top five conversation indicates that Makhachev has met the legacy thresholds that fans and fighters associate with the sport’s upper echelon.

From a practical standpoint, the next chapter likely depends on who is positioned to challenge Makhachev in the lightweight title picture and how the promotion wants to build its marquee matchups. The longer a champion keeps moving forward, the more the rest of the division accelerates around one goal: catching up, and doing it in a way that forces comparisons to stop being theoretical.

For Garry, the unanimous decision loss is a setback to a high-visibility trajectory. Even so, the decision loss does not erase what a win or a competitive performance can do for his status within the division. If he can regroup and reestablish momentum, the lightweight landscape may still offer him pathways back toward contention, particularly if the title picture remains anchored by Makhachev’s level of consistency.