UFC 290 was one of the most memorable cards of recent times, with enthralling fights from beginning to end. In the main event, many had tipped Yair Rodriguez to cause an upset against one of the greatest featherweights of all time. However, a dominant performance from Alexander Volkanovski saw him retain his title at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Ilia Topuria Vs Alexander Volkanovski next?
As Alexander Volkanovski left the cage on Saturday night following his victory over Yair Rodriguez at UFC 290, he encountered Ilia Topuria. They exchanged some words as the pair squared off in front of the cameras, generating excitement for those in the crowd and watching at home.
It’s fair to say that almost everybody was impressed with how dominant the champion was on Saturday night, but not Ilia Topuria. He played down Volkanovski’s performance, stating he didn’t see anything which particularly impressed him. The fight went how he expected it to, as Topuria believed Rodriguez would get taken down easily during the fight. Topuria has a good chance of being the next in line for a title shot for featherweight gold as Volkanovski has defeated the current top three in the rankings (Yair Rodriguez, Max Holloway, and Brian Ortega).
With Arnold Allen losing recently to Holloway, it would make sense for Topuria to be the next challenger for the featherweight title. If that were to happen, the timescale is currently unclear, as Volkanovski revealed in his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan that he needs to undergo surgery on his arm – it could be some time before his next fight.
Even when Volkanovski returns, he could move up in weight class to rechallenge Islam Makhachev for the lightweight title. Dana White said in the UFC 290 post-fight press conference that he would be willing to do whatever Volkanovski wants as he’s ‘earned the right.’ That’s difficult to argue, but it would mean Topuria has to wait for his shot at the champ, which he doesn’t mind doing:
”If that’s going to happen (Volkanovski moving up in weight), I don’t have any problem; I can wait. One of the best skills I have is patience. I don’t care,” Topuria told Ariel Helwani.
Alexandre Pantoja on UFC 290
Another fighter who may have to sit on the sidelines for a while is the new UFC Flyweight Champion, Alexandre Pantoja. His war with Brandon Moreno on Saturday night at UFC 290 was a Fight Of The Year contender, and he was sporting a nasty cut above his right eye during his interview with Ariel Helwani.
Pantoja’s words in his post-fight interview were very emotive as he screamed, ‘Are you proud of me now, Dad?’. You could see the pain behind his eyes as he said the words, and he gave fans more insight into his family background during his interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour.
”My mom is adopted and one of my heroes, you know? My Dad drinks a lot, and I saw a lot of fights [between] him and my mom. Maybe he’s like, selfish, you know”?
Pantoja then said there were times when his father was at home, but he heard him tell his mother to pretend he wasn’t there, leaving her to take care of him and his siblings. His Dad became aggressive when intoxicated, and Pantoja said that he doesn’t judge his father as he believes that despite what they all went through, he did his best.
Helwani asked who Pantoja wanted to fight next, and the new flyweight champion said he would be willing to fight Moreno for a fourth time but thinks the best thing would be for ‘The Assassin Baby’ to fight someone else first.
In a startling revelation, Pantoja said that he was working as an Uber Eats driver just two fights ago and gave up his job after receiving a fifty thousand dollar fight bonus. He would be happy to take on a second job again if required, as Pantoja is focused on providing a stable future for his family.
The optics of a newly crowned UFC champion recently needing a side hustle to pay the bills isn’t great. It will once again bring into question the topic of fighter pay in the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization, the UFC.
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