Alexander Volkanovski, Yair Rodriguez Unification Clash to Headline UFC 290

Our #UFC290 main event is OFFICIAL!

Dana White just dropped the entire main card for International Fight Week and it's HUGE 🔥 pic.twitter.com/aoNWRRiJvb

— UFC (@ufc) May 10, 2023

The featherweight division will have an undisputed champion again as Alexander Volkanovski and Yair Rodriguez have been booked to headline UFC 290.

The main attraction of the upcoming pay-per-view event in Las Vegas is the unification bout between 145-pound linear champion Volkanovski and interim titleholder Rodriguez. In the UFC 290 co-headliner, Brandon Moreno will face Alexandre Pantoja. “International Fight Week” will also feature the induction of former Ultimate Fighting Championship welterweight king Robbie Lawler’s UFC 189 clash with Rory MacDonald in the Hall of Fame, with “Ruthless” then set to compete against Niko Price in a bout that has been promoted as Lawler’s final contest.

Volkanovski (25-2, 12-1 UFC) is looking to bounce back after suffering his first promotional defeat, a unanimous decision loss at the hands of current 155-pound champion Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 where “The Great” moved up a weight class but fell short of becoming a two-division titleholder. Volkanovski will attempt the fifth defense of the title he captured from Max Holloway at UFC 245 in December 2019.

Rodriguez (15-3, 1 NC; 10-2, 1 NC UFC) won the interim championship in the UFC 284 co-headliner after forcing Josh Emmett to tap to a triangle choke in the second stanza. “El Pantera” is 4-1 in his latest assignments, including a no-contest with Jeremy Stephens at UFC Fight Night 159. His record includes victories over Brian Ortega and Chan Sung Jung, among others.

In his latest Octagon appearance, Moreno (21-6-2, 9-3-2 UFC) overcame long-term rival Deiveson Figueiredo via doctor stoppage at the end of Round 3 at UFC 283, unifying the 125-pound championship. “The Assassin Baby” had already faced Pantoja (25-5, 9-3 UFC) once in May 2019, when “The Cannibal” imposed his will en route to a unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 129. Now, Pantoja is looking to capture the flyweight championship and add another win to his three-bout streak.

UFC 290 will go down at the T-Mobile Arena in Sin City. The main card also sees a middleweight tilt between former divisional kingpin Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis with a shot at Israel Adesanya’s championship on the line. Also, Jalin Turner takes on Dan Hooker at lightweight and Bo Nickal faces Tresean Gore at middleweight.