UFC 290 takes place this weekend, with two title fights and a stacked undercard featuring former champions and highly-touted prospects. Read our preview of the UFC 290 main event below.

In the UFC 290 main event, UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski returns to the division in which he is considered the greatest fighter of all time to defend his belt against interim Champion and flashy finisher Yair Rodriguez.

Read our review of one of the greatest fight cards of all time, UFC 290, here.

Volkanovski entered the UFC in 2016 with a record of 13-1-0, winning several Championships on the Australian MMA regional scene. His only loss came in his fourth pro bout in 2013, contested two divisions above in the Welterweight division. While highly successful in Australia, Volkanovski entered the UFC as a lower-level prospect fighting on the prelims of UFC cards in Australia and New Zealand.

However, in three years in the organisation, Volkanovski worked his way up to becoming the UFC Featherweight Champion. After five solid wins, he faced his first step up in competition against perennial contender Chad Mendes, who he finished in the second round to establish himself as a real contender in the UFC. He then faced the extremely tough test of fighting long-time UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo in Aldo’s home country of Brazil.

Volkanovski once again passed the test with flying colours, dominating Aldo over three rounds to earn his first title shot against Max Holloway, who had dethroned Aldo to become the new Featherweight GOAT. Once again, Volkanovski was the underdog who overachieved, taking the fight to Holloway and winning the UFC Featherweight Championship via unanimous decision. He then beat Holloway again in the rematch to truly earn his place atop the division.

The Road To Moreno vs. Pantoja 2: UFC 290 Co-Main Event Preview

After beating the two best fighters in the UFC Featherweight division’s history, Volkanovski only continued to improve, working his way to earning the spot as the #1 pound-for-pound fighter on the planet with title defences against Brian Ortega, ‘The Korean Zombie’ Chan Sung Jung, and Max Holloway again. Instead of continuing to defend his belt in the division in which he has never lost, Volkanovski took the most challenging test possible, moving up to face UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev.

In one of the greatest fights in recent memory, Volkanovski went toe-to-toe with Makhachev over five rounds but fell agonisingly short, losing the fight via a highly-contentious unanimous decision. Even in a losing effort, Volkanovski’s star only rose with an impressive performance against a man who has largely been considered unbeatable. On the same fight card, the co-main event featured a bout for the interim UFC Featherweight Championship, won by Volkanovski’s UFC 290 foe Yair Rodriguez.

Rodriguez entered the UFC in 2014 at 22 years old, highly-touted as a prospect to watch in the Featherweight division. After winning The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America, Rodriguez put together a six-fight win streak in the UFC, including victories over Dan Hooker, Andre Fili, Alex Caceres and former UFC Lightweight and Welterweight Champion B.J. Penn. However, in a significant step up in competition against former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar, Rodriguez suffered the first loss of his UFC career.

Find the entire UFC 290: Volkanovski vs. Rodriguez fight card and start times here.

After taking over a year off following that loss, Rodriguez bounced back stunningly with a literally last-second elbow knockout of The Korean Zombie and a unanimous decision victory in a rematch against Jeremy Stephens. Rodriguez found himself once again close to a title shot, facing former UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway. Still, once again, Rodriguez fell agonisingly short, losing a unanimous decision to Holloway, who continued to beat every other Featherweight not named Alexander Volkanovski.

Following that loss, Rodriguez again showed the Mexican resilience he had displayed throughout his career, bouncing back with a TKO victory over Brian Ortega before submitting Josh Emmett in the second round of the UFC 284 co-main event to win the interim UFC Featherweight Championship. He now gets his first shot at an undisputed UFC title in the UFC 290 main event against Volkanovski.

The two men stylistically match up perfectly, setting up what should be a fascinating fight. Volkanovski has earnt his spot as one of the greatest fighters of all time on the back of his crisp boxing, strong leg kicks, high-level striking defence and well-rounded wrestling game. Rodriguez has always been a highly-touted prospect due to his aggressive Tae Kwon Do kicking style, diverse striking ability and high-level Jiu Jitsu.

Volkanovski has put together an incredible resume and enters the fight as the rightful favourite, having the ability to win the fight on the feet or the ground. If Rodriguez is to win this weekend, he will have to put on the performance of a lifetime, with a spectacular finish likely the only way he can come out victorious. Either way, we should be in for an incredible bout in the UFC 290 main event.

Find all the results from UFC 290: Alexander Volkanovski vs. Yair Rodriguez here.