Max Holloway, who produced a career-defining moment at 155 pounds, is confident he will have no trouble returning to featherweight.
Holloway, who won the BMF belt by knocking out Justin Gaethje in a lightweight bout at UFC 300, will compete for the featherweight strap against Ilya in the UFC 308 headliner on October 26th at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. Challenge Topria. The Hawaiian star addressed concerns that he might have trouble losing weight to 145 pounds in a recent video on his YouTube channel.
“Everyone keeps talking about the weight going into this game. The whole question about the last game was the weight, but the whole question about this game is the weight, because the last game we did. It’s because of that,” Holloway said. “But it is what it is. I’ve got the best people behind me. I have a wife and she cooks for me. And I brought my husband, Tyler Minton, back to the team. He’s going to be with us at fight week and he’s one of the best guys in the business.
UFC 308: Topuria vs. Holloway takes place Saturday at 2pm ET on ESPN+. Order now!
“I’ve never missed weight. I’ve never missed weight in my career and I’m not going to drop weight for this fight because this fight won’t last until I get back here. Because it took a lot of effort. People were saying, “I shouldn’t be here, I should be doing something else, I should be focusing on something else,” it’s over, there’s nothing I can do. I’ve said it over and over again that people have said it’s over. But again, we’re here and they’re talking. I’m fighting for a world title with this new generation. So I’m excited.”
UFC 300 was Holloway’s second foray into 155 pounds during a promotion that began in 2012. Before facing Gaethje, the former featherweight champion had wins over Chan Sung-jeong and Arnold Allen at 145 pounds. Holloway was 0-3 in championship matches against former titleholder Alexander Volkanovski, but Topuria’s title win at UFC 298 gives “Blessed” a new chance at a UFC gold medal. The door has been opened to obtain.
“The battle between Mine and Iria is one of the most anticipated battles of the year. All I can say is, listen up…you’re in for a treat,” he said. “It’s going to be a fun fight. I can’t wait to show you what we’ve been working on. A lot of the guys are MMA experts and we’re talking a lot. , we can’t wait to show you what we’ve been up to.”
