The 5 greatest three-fight runs in UFC history, and number one isn’t Khabib 👀 5. Pereira stopped Prochazka, Hill and Prochazka again in 7 months. 4. Cejudo beat Demetrious Johnson, TJ Dillashaw and Marlon Moraes and held two belts at once. 3. Islam beat Oliveira, then Volkanovski twice. 2. Khabib submitted McGregor, Poirier and Gaethje, then retired at 29-0. 1. Topuria knocked out Volkanovski, Holloway and Oliveira, and Holloway had never been knocked out before. Who would you put at the top? #ufc #iliatopuria #khabib
A social-media ranking of the five greatest three-fight runs in UFC history has put Ilia Topuria's trio of knockouts at No. 1, ahead of Khabib Nurmagomedov's closing stretch before his retirement.
The list, circulated on November 11, 2026, runs as follows. At No. 5 is Alex Pereira, who stopped Jiri Prochazka, Jamahal Hill and Prochazka again in seven months. Henry Cejudo is fourth, beating Demetrious Johnson, TJ Dillashaw and Marlon Moraes and holding two belts at once. Islam Makhachev is third, beating Charles Oliveira and then Alexander Volkanovski twice. Nurmagomedov is second, submitting Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje before retiring at 29-0. Topuria tops the list for knocking out Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Oliveira, with the ranking noting Holloway had never been knocked out before.
The Topuria run
Topuria, 29, is 17-1 and ranked first at lightweight and first pound-for-pound. His run covers three finishes: Volkanovski in round two at UFC 298 on February 17, 2024, Holloway in round three at UFC 308 on October 26, 2024, and Oliveira in round one at UFC 317 on June 28, 2025. The last two were title fights, according to his recorded bouts.
The list leaves out what followed. His most recent recorded fight, on June 14, 2026 at UFC Freedom 250, was a fourth-round TKO loss to Gaethje in a title fight, his only defeat on record.
The other names
Oliveira, 37, appears in two of the five runs, as a victim of both Makhachev and Topuria. The Brazilian is 37-11, ranked third at lightweight, and beat Holloway by unanimous decision at UFC 326 on March 7, 2026, his most recent recorded fight.
Holloway, 34, is 28-9 and ranked fourth. He also lost to Volkanovski three times between 2019 and 2022, all by decision. After the loss to Oliveira, he beat Conor McGregor by first-round TKO at UFC 329 on July 11, 2026.
Why it matters
- Topuria's three victims are a former featherweight champion, a former featherweight champion with a long unbeaten run against stoppage losses, and a former lightweight champion.
- Oliveira and Holloway have since met again, and Oliveira won, a result that sits awkwardly beside the knockout credentials the ranking cites.
- The ranking puts finishing quality ahead of the longer unbeaten stretch Nurmagomedov carried into retirement.
