"Am I tripping?” - Fans react to Dana White acknowledging Islam Makhachev as P4P No. 1 instead of Jon Jones in UFC 311 fight announcement

Islam Makhachev will kick off mixed martial arts' 2025 calendar year in epic fashion. He is set to headline UFC 311 on Jan. 18 against Arman Tsarukyan. The fight was rumored to be targeted for January, and UFC CEO Dana White confirmed the matchup in an announcement on Dec. 4.

But the announcement itself was not what caught fans' attention. Instead, it was White's reference to Makhachev as the "pound-for-pound number one" fighter in the world.

Over the past few months, White had been adamant that the P4P number one fighter in the world is Jon Jones and not the Dagestani.

His recent change of tune over the P4P king caused a stir amongst fans, who took to the comment section of White's recent UFC 311 announcement. He said this:

"[UFC 311] will be headlined by the pound-for-pound number one ranked fighter in the world, and lightweight champion, Islam Makhachev taking on number one contender Arman Tsarukyan."

Check out Dana White's announcement below:

Fans were swift to point out White's declaration and poked fun at the UFC CEO, saying this:

"Did I have it right or am I tripping? Did Dana White just call Islam Makhachev the P4P best fighter in the world? Finally."

"Who's the number one pound-for-pound, Dana?"

"I just know that it killed Dana to call Islam #1 P4P"

See more fan reactions below:

Screenshot of fan reactions to White calling Makhachev the P4P number one fighter in the world

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Islam Makhachev shares two-word reaction to UFC 311 clash with Arman Tsarukyan

Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan will be one of two title fights featuring on UFC 311's card. Merab Dvalishvili and Umar Nurmagomedov will go to war in the co-main event of the evening for the bantamweight title before Makhachev and Tsarukyan face off in the headlining fight.

The lightweight title fight will be a rematch of the clash between Makhachev and Akhalkalakets in 2019, which was also the 29-year-old's debut. Before Alexander Volkanovski clashed with the Dagestani at UFC 284, Tsarukyan's fight with Makhachev five years ago was viewed as his toughest test to date.

After Dana White confirmed the lightweight title clash, the 33-year-old shared two words, posting this on Instagram:

"Round 2."

Check out Islam Makhachev's post below:

Screenshot of Makhachev's Instagram story`

Makhachev's teammate and friend, Nurmagomedov, hopes to continue his team's success by dethroning Dvalishvili in January.