After UFC 308, Max Holloway finds himself in a familiar position; he once more failed to recapture the belt that in his heart he may still think of as belonging to him.
After each title loss to Alexander ‘the Great’ Volkanovski, Holloway put his head down and worked; he built himself back up, improved, and never stopped keeping his eye on the prize. Beating a litany of contenders got him back to the belt each time, and when Topuria stole it from Volkanovski, Max knew he had one last chance to reclaim it.
He had just come from the highest of highs, scoring the presumptuous ‘Knockout of the Year’ as time expired in a “BMF” title fight against Justin Gaethje at 155-lbs.
That fight got him ranked at lightweight before his loss to Topuria, and leaves a door open for ‘Blessed’ to do something he refused to do each time he lost to Volk, despite many saying he should.
It appears Max Holloway is moving up to lightweight, for good instead of just for a single fight this time. In two appearances in the division, Holloway put on two fights as memorable as any: this year’s Gaethje fight and his ‘Fight of the Year’ in 2019 against Dustin Poirier.
Max Holloway admits “155 [pounds] looks really good” after his loss to Ilia Topuria at #UFC308:
“What else is there to do?” pic.twitter.com/9xS0bkPczV
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) October 26, 2024
With his tall frame and a weight cut that got harder over the years, it makes sense to make this move now. At lightweight a veritable cornucopia of exciting fights away the featherweight legend, while mostly only rematches would be on the table at lightweight.
For his first-ever fight as a ranked lightweight – fifth-ranked to be exact – any option would make sense from a Dustin Poirier rematch to a Dan Hooker fight to a showdown with the less famous but just as exciting Rafael Fiziev.
In fact, Poirier has suggested a four-man, one-night tournament for the next BMF title fight, with himself and three former rivals – Justin Gaethje, Dan Hooker, and Max Holloway.
The one-night aspect of the tournament is unlikely to get sanctioned – though it would be a fun throwback to the PRIDE FC days – but the rest of the idea could happen.
Dustin has a winning record against Hooker and Holloway, who have not fought each other yet, so the best matchups in this scenario are Poirier vs Gaethje 3, to decide the rivalry, and Dan Hooker vs Max Holloway. The winners of each fight will meet for all the marbles.
In fact, whether the tournament takes place or not, Dan vs Max is the right fight to make. These are two long, tall former featherweights who delete opponents not with one-punch knockout power, but by making them waste away with the volume of their dynamic striking offense.
Almost every Max Holloway fight is a surefire “Fight of the Night,” but with Hooker’s history of bonuses this one could be yet another “Fight of the Year” candidate for each if it goes down in 2025.
As a result, his fans await his next fight with perhaps more trepidation than excitement. Volkanovski just turned 36; time will not improve the reflexes and durability which age takes away.
It may be a good fight when it takes place, and his place in the division cannot be denied, but it is a shame that the world is likely to see such a once-dominant and still-beloved GOAT lose yet again and hold up the division in the process.
At least the skill and youth of Ilia Topuria will give him the chance to be around for a while yet to answer the questions that all the new generation challengers will be asking of him.
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