Alexander Volkanovski cautious of Yair Rodríguez ahead of UFC 290: ‘He’s one of the most dangerous fighters’
Alexander Volkanovski has claimed interim featherweight gold holder, Yair Rodríguez is likely going to be one of the most “dangerous” fighters he will share the Octagon with ahead of their UFC 290 title unification fight – touting his dynamism and knockout ability.
Volkanovski, a current featherweight champion to boot, most recently headlined UFC 284 back in February of this year in Perth, Australia – suffering his first promotional loss in a unanimous decision loss against undisputed lightweight kingpin, Islam Makhachev.
On that same card, Chihuahua native, Rodríguez managed to mint himself as the interim featherweight champion, submitting Josh Emmett with a second round triangle choke submission triumph.
Earlier this month, reports confirmed how the promotion are targeting a title unification fight between Volkanovski and Rodríguez for UFC 290 during International Fight Week in July – with the matchup expected to take main event honors.
Alexander Volkanovski weighs up Yair Rodríguez clash at UFC 290
Sharing his thoughts on the matchup, Volkanovski claims Rodríguez may be the most dangerous fighters he has shared the Octagon with so far during his gold-laden UFC tenure.
“I’m looking at him (Yair Rodríguez) as a real challenger,” Alexander Volkanovski told The Mac Life during a recent interview. “Like, he’s a dangerous fighter. He could be one of the most dangerous fighters I’ve foguth, really. When you talk about unpredictability, knockout power, and so many different tools, you need to take him really serious (sic).”
“I think I’m the best fighter in the world, so am I confident? Yeah,” Alexander Volkanovski explained. “But I know not to take this guy lightly. He’s been dominating and looking good in his last few fights, you know what I mean?” *(Transcribed by MMA Mania)
In his last featherweight outing, Volkanovski retained his championship in a one-sided unanimous decision victory over recent UFC Kansas City headliner and three-time foe, former titleholder, Max Holloway in July of last year in the co-main event of UFC 276.
