UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway was forced out of his title fight against Frankie Edgar at UFC 222, but he is still game for some big fights this year…
Holding the longest win streak in featherweight history, and among the top five in UFC history, 26-year old 145-pound champion Max Holloway has come of age. It wasn’t that long ago that ‘Blessed’ had dropped two fights in a row in the UFC octagon.
Since 2013, the Hawaiian has won 12 fights in a row, looking rampant in doing so. His most recent duo of wins over featherweight legend Jose Aldo were extremely impressive. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see Holloway in action on March 3 because of a leg injury.
Instead, Brian Ortega scored a massive upset knockout against ‘The Answer,’ earning himself the next crack at Holloway. Although the scrap with Ortega is yet to be booked, Holloway is already talking about challenges in new weight classes.
Holloway Wants The Eagle
Talking to Mike Finch of Cage Fanatic, the featherweight champion says a jump to lightweight is likely on the cards. Due to the new USADA weight cutting regulations, ‘Blessed’ might not have a choice.
That being said, it’s not all bad going up to 155 pounds. As you’ll read below, as transcribed by MMA Mania, Holloway relishes the challenges awaiting him at lightweight:
“You know, everybody keep talking about me and a guy too. That Irish man [Conor McGregor]. Everybody want to see us run that back, everybody seems to not be talking about Khabib [Nurmagomedov]. I want Khabib. You know, to be the best you got to beat the best and one of those guys is Khabib. A lot of guys draw Tony [Ferguson]’s name.
“I remember Tony saying that he wanted to come down to 145-pounds, but they all can stay up there. Stay at 155-pounds, no excuses, let me come up and let me fight. I’m a big boy and we can go up. And 170-pounds ain’t so far after that.”
Continue reading below…
“I’m a Samoan, I’m Hawaiian, I’m Polynesian. I love eating food,” said Holloway. “You guys know I love cupcakes. I’m going to put my weight on and we’ll see what happens. No one’s safe. No one’s safe. I’m willing. I’m ready to go. After this injury we’ll get back to it at 145-pounds and we’ll go from there. That’s the beauty [of how I’d stop the pressure and takedowns of Nurmagomedov], we don’t know until we get in there.”
“I have an idea. We all can have an idea. Everybody can say this, and this, and that, but once you get locked into those cages, it’s a different feeling. So, you guy’s gotta wait and see. Just like anything else, you guy’s gotta wait and see.”
