UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski defends his featherweight title for the 5th time in a row! After greats like Max Holloway, The Korean Zombie, and Brian Ortega, Volkanovski has now added Yair Rodriguez to his list of title defenses as well. Coming into the fight, Yair was the interim UFC featherweight titleholder, and the bout at UFC 290, was a title unification contest.
Ahead of the bout, Volkanovski had a cut on his face that had the potential to play a deciding factor in the bout. However, Volkanovski once again proved why he has such a great fight IQ. He knew the threat Yair Rodriguez possessed on his feet. Hence, he focused his attention on grappling very early on in the bout. Alexander The Great did not afford Yair even a second to get comfortable with striking and landed some vicious elbows on the mat.
Volk’s featherweight reign continues 👑 #UFC290 pic.twitter.com/cvSh0qfaaU
— UFC (@ufc) July 9, 2023
But, round 2 was much better for the challenger as the “El Pantera” landed some big and unorthodox kicks on Volkanovski. However, the champ did not shy away from striking either as he landed some big punches and earned Rodriguez’s respect. It ultimately paid off in round 3, as Volkanovski got the stoppage win at the 4:19 minute mark of the round.
Alexander Volkanovski calls out Ilia Topuria at UFC 290
According to UFC stats, Volkanovski landed 149 strikes in total and 66 of them were significant strikes. But, Yair Rodriguez, on the other hand, landed 57 strikes in total and only 40 significant strikes. Volk supplemented it with 7 takedowns and 7:13 minutes of total ground control in the bout. So one can imagine how dominant his performance was at UFC 290. But afterward, he made some big claims about his future.
The champ revealed that he was injured during the fight camp and is set to go under the knife to repair his wounds. However, he also values staying active and he wants to win the lightweight strap in the near future. However, there is a sense that Charles Oliveira will challenge for the 155 lbs title next. Hence, Volkanovski shifted his attention to Spanish-Georgian fighter, Ilia Topuria.
“You might be undefeated but I’m coming for that zero.”@alexvolkanovski went face-to-face with @Topuriailia after his #UFC290 win 👀 pic.twitter.com/VWWXckTmVh
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 9, 2023
There was certainly no friendly vibe between the two as Volkanovski ran across Topuria on his way to the back. Topuria made fun of Alex’s height and added, “You look so short boy.” However, the champ was undeterred as he looked Topuria dead in the eye and added that he was gunning for the undefeated record that Topuria holds currently. While there is no timeline for the contest, it seems like a foregone conclusion that the UFC will be more than happy to book the fight.