Results, Bonus Winners, and Highlights From UFC 290 - Alexander Volkanovski of Australia punches Yair Rodriguez

 

On Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, UFC Featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski solidified his case as the world's best pound-for-pound MMA fighter. Volkanovski defeated Yair Rodriguez in the third round of the UFC 290 main event to successfully defend the championship he had held since December 2019.

 Alexander Volkanovski of Australia punches Yair Rodriguez 

Volkanovski appeared to dispatch the threatening Rodriguez with ease. In 12 attempts, the champion was victorious seven times. The champion also outlanded the rival in total strikes 149-57 and important strikes 66-40.

Volkanovski earned a rematch victory after losing only the second time in his MMA career in February against UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makachev. Volkanovski attempted to become a two-division fighter in that fight, but was defeated by a unanimous decision.

Volkanovski demonstrated that he is still the 145-pound division's king by beating Rodriguez. Volkanovski has nearly swept the featherweight division, with three victories over future Hall-of-Famer Max Holloway, another over Jose Aldo (whose HOF induction was confirmed on Saturday), and unanimous-decision victories over Chang Sung Jung and Brian Ortega.

It is probable that Ilia Topuria will emerge as Volkanovski's next opponent. The former defeated Josh Emmet by unanimous decision on June 24, so it appears he and Volkanovski are on the same timetable.

However, Volkanovski stated that he may require surgery following Saturday night's victory, which may keep him out of play for a while. There is also speculation that he might seek another go at Makhachev. Once we know how long Volkanovski will be out of action, we'll have a better notion of what he'll do next.

In any event, Topuria is presently placed No. 5 in the UFC rankings, which also include Rodriguez at No. 1, Holloway at No. 2, Ortega at No. 3, and Arnold Allen at No. 4.

Volkanovski has just defeated Rodriguez. He has three victories against Holloway and one over Ortega. Allen is ranked fourth, but after losing to Holloway in his last bout, it is doubtful that he will face Volkanovski again.

For Rodriguez, a battle against Allen or possibly Topuria would seem natural, while Volkanovski may wait to see what happens in the next round of contender clashes before returning to the Octagon.

The next few weeks should be exciting as the preparations for the 145-pound category take form.

UFC 290 Attendance and Gate, Performance Bonuses

The attendance for Saturday's event was 19,204, according to UFC President Dana White, who spoke to the media after the event. The gate was $9.75 million for a "sold out" audience, according to White.

The Perfomance Bonuses for UFC 290 went to the following fighters.

• Fight of the Night - Alexander Pantoja def. Brandon Moreno - $50,000 apiece
• Performances of the Night 1 - $50.000 - Denise Gomes def. Yazmin Jauregui
• Performances of the Night 2 - $50,000 - Dricus Du Plessis def. Robert Whittaker

Pantoja dethroned Moreno to become the new UFC Featherweight Champion in their third meeting. Pantoja has now defeated Moreno three times.

Pantoja’s first win over Moreno came in July 2016 at The Ultimate Fighter Season 24 finale. The Brazilian defeated Moreno again at UFC Fight Night 129.

Gomes scored an amazing 20-second first-round finish. Quite honestly, it could have been stopped sooner.

Du Plessis seemed to set up a shot at UFC Middleweight Champion, Israel Adesanya with a TKO win over former champion Robert Whittaker. Adesanya came into the Octagon for a confrontation with Du Plessis. There is some real life tension between the two that the UFC seems likely to lean into as we move toward an inevitable clash.

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