The historic UFC 300 event will offer the third BMF fight of the promotion between Justin Gaethje and Max Holloway, CEO Dana White announced this Tuesday.
BREAKING NEWS:#UFC300 will have Jim Miller vs Bobby Green and Justin Gaethje vs Max Holloway for the BMF Title at Lightweight pic.twitter.com/Cx1rbuWKfo
— danawhite (@danawhite) January 17, 2024
The bout featuring the special MMA recognition title will be included in the lineup, which the promotion is trying to pack with its biggest stars. Gaethje and Holloway currently both hold respectable spots in the UFC roster, with the former being an ex-lightweight champ and the current BMF champ. Meanwhile, Holloway is presently the No. 1-ranked featherweight fighter, who holds an impressive record with the names he faced in the past, including Alexander Volkanovski, Anthony Pettis, Dustin Poirier, Charles Oliveira, and Conor McGregor.
This will be the third time the company will hold its BMF match after the first was won by Jorge Masvidal at UFC 244 in 2019 when he defeated Nate Diaz. The second one was a match between Gaethje and Poirier at UFC 291, with the former beating “The Diamond.” Now, with Holloway returning to lightweight, Gaethje will test his skill again to retain his BMF status.
This is a surprising turn of events in the lightweight division after champ Islam Makhachev voiced his intent to face Gaethje first instead of the winner of the Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan fight the UFC is pushing to him. According to the Russian fighter, he’s no longer interested in rematches, underscoring that he still hasn’t fought Gaethje, making this choice rational for him. However, with the recent announcements made, it is clear the promotion has other plans for its pound-for-pound king.
