UFC 290: Volkanovski Solidifies Place As World’s Best Featherweight
Alexander Volkanovski reminds everyone why he is the best featherweight in the world
Alexander Volkanovski delivered his latest masterpiece at UFC 290, assaulting Yair Rodríguez in a brilliant TKO victory.
Volkanovski (26–2) successfully defended the featherweight title for a fifth time, inching closer to José Aldo’s record of seven.
Rodríguez (15–4, 1 NC), who entered the bout as the interim champ, was simply no match for Volkanovski—who revealed after the fight that he was competing with an injured arm. Yet, remarkably, not even that could derail his dominance.
Volkanovski vowed not to allow Rodríguez any time to work. He held true to his word.
There was a feeling out process in the opening round, which ended after roughly two minutes with a takedown by Volkanovski. That position remained for the next three minutes, with Volkanovski forced to relent his place atop Rodríguez when the round ended.
Rodríguez started the second round more aggressively, but didn’t land his attempted kicks in the first minute. Volkanovski remained persistent, landed a shot, brought Rodríguez back to the ground and refused to let him up. He landed six of his first nine takedown attempts, doing a phenomenal job of maintaining ground control and landing his ground-and-pound, busting open Rodríguez in the process.
Through two rounds, Volkanovski dominated Rodríguez on the ground. The question entering the third round was whether Rodríguez could keep this fight on the feet. Ultimately, he could not. Rodríguez attempted a fight-ending kick, but couldn’t land it. He left himself exposed, and Volkanovski landed a right hand. Another takedown set up the finish, where a flurry of shots left Rodríguez defenseless and unable to continue–and Volkanovski had his hand raised again.
It was fitting that Volkanovski stood as the centerpiece on the fight card of the year. He put forth an astounding performance against an elite opponent in Rodríguez, once again proving an undeniable truth.
Volkanovski is not only the best featherweight in the world; he is moving toward becoming the greatest featherweight of all-time.
In extraordinary fashion, Alexandre Pantoja crowns himself flyweight champion
Alexandre Pantoja has become Brandon Moreno’s kryptonite.
The Achilles heel struck again, as Pantoja defeated Moreno for a second time—third when including their 2016 bout on The Ultimate Fighter—crowning himself the new flyweight champion.
Pantoja (26–5) has never been finished, a streak he kept alive in his title bout against Moreno (21-7-2). This fight was mixed martial arts of the highest level, further cementing UFC 290 as the best card of 2023–and the judges got this one right, scoring it in Pantoja’s favor by split decision.
Pantoja set the tone in the opening round with a big left hand that dropped Moreno. He followed that up with a sharp elbow that busted him open. Moreno bounced back in the second, capitalizing on an overly aggressive Pantoja. It started with Moreno connecting with his jab. Then he executed a takedown, then took Pantoja’s back with three minutes left in the round. They were back on their feet within a minute, but Pantoja clearly looked fatigued. Moreno landed some solid shots to end the round, but Pantoja remained competitive.
The fight quickly resumed in the third after a brief timeout when Pantoja hit Moreno with an accidental shot to the groin. Pantoja took Moreno’s back, but he could not finish him. Moreno fought back to his feet, and his speed caused constant problems, allowing him to land multiple shots while Pantoja only hit sporadically.
The third round embodied the fighting spirit, with both men absorbing an extreme amount of punishment. That led to the fourth round—the first time in Pantoja’s career that one of his fights entered a championship round, but familiar territory for Moreno. They came out trading shots, with Moreno’s jabs landing and Pantoja’s hooks. Pantoja landed an elbow, briefly bringing Moreno to the ground before he scrambled back to his feet.
That margin of difference in the fourth round was razor thin, but that may have determined the scorecards. If Pantoja was awarded the fourth, then he likely had a 3–1 advantage entering the fifth round.
This was an all-out battle for 25 minutes. Both men were heavily fatigued in the final five minutes, and Pantoja controlled Moreno’s back long enough to avoid any further damage.
Pantoja is not the most well-known fighter, but this was a life-changing moment. His sacrifice paid off at 290, pushed to his absolute limit by Moreno, and he earned his place as the new flyweight champion of the world.
Dricus du Plessis dominates Robert Whittaker—and now eyes Israel Adesanya
Dricus du Plessis wanted a shot against Israel Adesanya.
And he is going to get it.
Du Plessis obliterated the great Robert Whittaker, winning his eighth fight in a row–and notching the most impressive victory of his career. This was a middleweight title eliminator, putting Du Plessis (20–2) next in line for a shot at Adesanya.
The unorthodox style of Du Plessis was difficult for Whittaker to solve. This was largely even in the first round until the last two minutes, when Du Plessis took control. He brought Whittaker to the ground and landed an elbow that busted him open.
Whittaker came out firing in the second round, with a right hand and right kick combo. But it all came crashing down when Du Plessis stunned Whittaker with a jab, then ended the fight with a flurry of body shots that left Whittaker (24–7) defenseless.
Whittaker (24–7) had won 13 of his last 15, with those only two losses suffered against Adesanya. This performance was a statement, as no one has treated Whittaker in some dominating fashion—at least not since Adesanya did it in 2019.
As evidenced in the post-fight Octagon interview, the build to Adesanya-Du Plessis will be intense.
Dan Hooker prevails by split decision in epic encounter
Dan Hooker escaped what appeared to be certain defeat, finding a way to overcome Jalin Turner. The judges ruled this a split decision victory for Hooker, which was the right call, even though it appeared improbable. Incredibly, Hooker secured the win with a broken arm.
Turner drilled Hooker with a left high kick in the second round, landing so cleanly that it looked like it should end the fight. Yet a bloodied Hooker persevered, throwing strikes that put Turner on his back. The last 30 seconds of the second round were extraordinary. Hooker locked in a rear naked choke in the final moments, but the round expired before the inevitable tap from Turner.
The third round was back-and-forth, and a striking assault from Hooker brought Turner to the ground. Neither man could secure the finish, making this an incredibly difficult judge to score, but Hooker had the advantage in the second and third round.
This was fought at catchweight because Turner (13–7) failed to make weight. The victory marks the second in a row for Hooker (23–12), who will return to the top 10 of the lightweight division rankings.
Bo Nickal knocks out Val Woodburn
Bo Nickal did not need to wrestle.
In the opening bout of UFC 290, Nickal finished Val Woodburn in under a minute.
Just his second UFC appearance, The 27-year-old needed only 38 seconds to give Woodburn (7–1) the first defeat of his career. Nickal (5–0) remains undefeated, and he made it look easy.
Nickal’s short right hook stunned Woodburn. He then connected with a left, an uppercut, and he then finished Woodburn with a vicious right hand.
This fight was put together on short notice after Tresean Gore was unable to compete. Nickal needs some tougher competition, but for the time being, it appears the hype is real.
Preview
Yair Rodríguez is looking to upset the balance at UFC 290.
If Rodríguez defeats Alexander Volkanovski later tonight, he will disrupt more than the featherweight division, but also the entire upper echelon of the UFC.
“This is an opportunity for me to reach the next level of competition,” says Rodríguez, who enters the interim champ. “Alexander Volkanovski is just an amazing opponent. Even though I’ve had several opportunities to show my ability, this will be different. Alexander Volkanovski will push me to the edge.”
The bout between Volkanovski and Rodríguez headlines 290, the most complete card so far this year. There is certainly potential for the main event to be a one-sided affair–Volkanovski has been on an utter tear of the division for the past six years.
Volkanovski obliterated formal rival Max Holloway last summer. That is particularly troublesome for Rodríguez, who lost to Holloway in November of 2021. Altogether, Volkanovski has defeated Holloway three times, crippling him–and, for that matter, practically every other opponent–with his deadly speed.
“He’s impressive,” says Rodríguez. “His quickness, his explosiveness, his strength. I just don’t think he’ll be able to find me.”
From bottom to top, the 290 card is incredible. Rising star Cameron Saaiman fights on the early prelims, and the prelims offers matchups–including Jimmy Crute-Alonzo Menifield, Jack Della Maddalena-Josiah Harrell, Robbie Lawler-Nike Prico–that are better than some Fight Night cards.
The main card also contains plenty of firepower, particularly in the co-main with Brandon Moreno defending the flyweight title against Alexandre Pantoja. Bo Nickal-Val Woodburn, Jalin Turner-Dan Hooker, and Robert Whittaker-Driscus du Plessis complete the lineup, along with the Volkanovski-Rodríguez centerpiece.
“It’s a career-changing moment,” says Rodríguez. “There are times when somebody younger and hungrier comes to your jungle. My moment is now.”
Rodríguez enters the bout an underdog, which doesn’t bother him in the least. Volkanovski has yet to be beaten in the UFC’s featherweight division, but Rodríguez plans on changing that.
“I always find a way,” says Rodríguez. “I know when to use my weapons to take advantage of situations in a fight. Volkanovski hasn’t fought someone like me who can attack from different angles.
“He is one of the greatest of all-time, but this is going to be different for him. I just need to be smart about what’s in front of me, and I need to take advantage of it and get that W.”
Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.
