Alexander Volkanovski Smashes Yair Rodriguez, Retains Title in UFC 290 Headliner

Alexander Volkanovski remains at the peak of his powers.

The City Kickboxing standout showcased his physicality in the UFC 290 main event, defeating Yair Rodriguez via technical knockout on Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Volkanovski ended the bout with a salvo of ground-and-pound at the 4:19 mark of Round 3 to rebound from a narrow loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 this past February.

“You’ve got to expect the unexpected. Everybody that knows this game knows how dangerous he was … This week I flipped the switch,” Volkanovski said. “I’m the champ. I’m the king of this division. No one is ever stopping me.”

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While Rodriguez (15-4, 10-3 1 NC UFC) did his best to threaten with his flashy toolbox of kicks, Volkanovski (26-2, 13-1 UFC) gradually broke down is Mexican foe. The Aussie grounded Rodriguez repeatedly in the opening 10 minutes, methodically hammering away with ground-and-pound from above. Rodriguez showed a sense of urgency early in the third frame, blending punching combinations with kicks — a few of which drew nods of acknowledgment from his opponent. However, those kicks would also lead to his demise. Volkanovski set the stage for the finishing sequence when countered a Rodriguez kick with a powerful right hook. A reeling Rodriguez backed up to the fence, eating a knee and uppercut in close quarters before being dumped on the canvas. From there, Volkanovski smashed his adversary with alternating left and right hands until referee Herb Dean had no choice but to pull him off of Rodriguez.

“I knew that when I started circling away he would switch stance, and I knew that right hook would be pretty good,” Volkanovski.

Pantoja Captures Flyweight Crown in Instant Classic

Alexandre Pantoja just might have Brandon Moreno’s number.

In a flyweight championship epic that will go down in history, Pantoja claimed the 125-pound strap with a split-decision triumph over Moreno in the UFC 290 co-main event. Derek Cleary and Junichiro Kamijo scored the bout 48-47 — both for Pantoja — while Ben Cartlidge saw it 49-46 in favor of Moreno. Pantoja is now an unofficial 3-0 against Moreno, with a decision triumph at UFC Fight Night 129 and an exhibition submission victory on “The Ultimate Fighter 24” also on his ledger.

Pantoja threatened to make it a quick night. He floored Moreno with a short left hook to the chin early in Round 1 before following his foe to the floor and cutting him with elbows from top position. Moreno showed a champion’s resolve by making it to the end of the round, and what ensued thereafter might rank as the best fight in the history of the division.

Moreno regained his bearings and peppered Pantoja the rest of the way with snappy jabs and right hands. He also busted his opponent open with a standing elbow in Round 3. While Moreno held the edge in volume during exchanges, Pantoja continued to fire back under duress, though his power wasn’t the same as it was in the opening stanza. What really made the difference for the Brazilian was his ability to control the majority of the grappling exchanges. Though he never threatened Moreno with a submission, Pantoja landed six takedowns and ended the final frame by making his Mexican adversary carry him like a backpack, an image that might have sealed his victory.

Pantoja has won his last four in UFC competition.

Du Plessis Stops Whittaker, Claims No. 1 Contender Spot

It would be wise to stop underestimating Dricus Du Plessis.

With reigning middleweight champion Israel Adesanya sitting cageside, Du Plessis claimed the No. 1 contender’s spot in emphatic fashion with a second-round technical knockout of Robert Whittaker. The South Africa native ended the bout with a swarm of punches at the 2:23 mark of Round 2. Du Plessis (20-2, 6-0) has won his last eight professional outings.

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Whittaker (24-7, 15-5 UFC) appeared to be in control early, as he countered effectively behind his jab while avoiding the majority of his opponent’s offerings. Du Plessis seized momentum late in Round 1, when he executed a headlock takedown and opened a significant cut near Whittaker’s right eye with an elbow from top position.

Du Plessis built upon that in the second stanza, as he stumbled Whittaker with a clean straight right to the face. With the former champ reeling, Du Plessis swarmed with punches to the head and body against the fence, which forced a defenseless Whittaker to drop to a knee. “Still Knocks” continued the salvo until Marc Goddard intervened on Whittaker’s behalf.

At the conclusion of the bout, Adesanya entered the cage to face off against Du Plessis, and the two middleweights exchanged words in the Octagon. It’s widely expected that Adesanya will defend his title agianst Du Plessis at UFC 293 in Sydney.

Hooker Edges Turner in Brawl

Dan Hooker shook off a slow start to capture a split decision triumph against Jalin Turner in a back-and-forth lightweight slugfest. Derek Cleary and Ron McCarthy scored the fight 29-28 for Hooker (23-12, 13-8 UFC), while Adalaide Byrd submitted a 29-28 tally for Turner (13-7, 6-4 UFC), who missed weight by two pounds one day prior.

What started as a technical affair gradually shifted into a brawl. Turner controlled the range in Round 1 with stance switches, straight punches to the head and kicks to the body. “The Tarantula” continued that momentum early in the second frame, when he busted Hooker open with a clean head kick. “The Hangman” turned the tide late in the round, however, as he hurt Turner and backed him into the fence with a flurry of punches. Hooker locked in a rear-naked choke to cap off a wild round, but Turner was saved by the horn.

Turner appeared to be almost out of gas by the start of the final frame, and Hooker took advantage. Turner landed a takedown early out of desperation, but Hooker poured it on after scrambling back to his feet. He pressured with more punching combinations and sent Turner tumbling to the canvas with the onslaught. The City Kickboxing product then followed his foe into guard, where he spent most of the rest of the frame racking up control time and landing ground-and-pound. The fighters returned to their feet in the waning moments, but Turner didn’t have enough time to turn things around.

Nickal Earns Fifth First-Round Finish

Bo Nickal proved he is ready for a step up in competition, as he secured his fifth career first-round stoppage against short-notice opponent Valentine Woodburn in a featured middleweight tilt. The former three-time NCAA national champion wrestler needed just 38 seconds to remove Woodburn from the ranks of the unbeaten.

Nickal (5-0, 2-0 UFC) didn’t need to use his vaunted wrestling this time around. He clipped Woodburn (7-1, 0-1 UFC) with right hook during an initial exchange before putting his foe on wobbly legs with a follow-up left hook. Moments later, he dropped Woodburn with a left uppercut and dove in to seal his victory with a missile of a right hand. That prompted referee Chris Tognoni to intervene and save Woodburn from further punishment.

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