LAS VEGAS (AP) – After briefly flirting with the lightweight division, Alexander Volkanovski returned to featherweight and showed yesterday why he’s still the best in that weight.
Volkanovski re-asserted himself as the champion with a technical knockout over Yair Rodriguez at 4:19 of the third round in UFC 290.
Rodriguez was the interim champion after Volkanovski temporarily moved up to lightweight, but the Australian left little doubt who the better fighter in running his record to 26-2 in what was scheduled as a five-round bout.
“There was a bit of fear knowing how dangerous he was,” Volkanovski said. “That’s the honest truth. I put in my head. This week, I flipped the switch because of the respect I have for him. Now I’m a champion. I’m the king of the division. No one’s ever stopped me.”
Volkanovski took Rodriguez (16-4) to the mat near the two-minute mark of the first round and kept him there to dictate the pace. That became a theme as the second round played out much the same way, with Volkanovski, 34, also delivering several shots to Rodriguez’s face.
Rodriguez, who is from Mexico, then took the fight to Volkanovski in the third round, preventing the ground and pound with a series of kicks to put him on the defence. But with a minute left, Volkanovski slammed Rodriguez, 30, to the mat and pounded him with rights and lefts before referee Herb Dean stepped in.
This was Volkanovski’s first fight since a loss by unanimous decision to lightweight champion lightweight Islam Makhachev. That ended Volkanovski’s 22-fight winning streak, and after the brief elevation to lightweight, he dropped back down to featherweight for this fight.
Before moving up, Volkanovski had won five titles fights to make a strong argument as best featherweight of all time. He also has been in the conversation for top current pound-for-pound fighter, and Volkanovski is second in the UFC’s official rankings to Jon Jones.
