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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight elites Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar will clash TONIGHT (Sat., July 27, 2019) from inside Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Holloway saw an opportunity to become double-champ and took his shot, but a valiant effort did not prove enough to overcome Dustin Poirier. Luckily, Holloway was not risking his Featherweight crown in that attempt, so he can simply return to shedding the additional pounds and defend his throne. Edgar, meanwhile, will go down as a legend in the sport, but the 37-year-old combatant has to be closer to the end of his career than the start. This is very likely his last opportunity to capture the Featherweight crown, which definitely puts even more pressure on “The Answer” to figure out a path to victory opposite the young Hawaiian.
Let’s take a closer look at the keys to victory for each man:
Max Holloway
Record: 20-4
Key Wins: Jose Aldo (UFC 218, UFC 212), Brian Ortega (UFC 231) Anthony Pettis (UFC 206), Ricardo Lamas (UFC 199), Cub Swanson (UFC on FOX 15), Jeremy Stephens (UFC 194)
Key Losses: Dustin Poirier (UFC 236, UFC 143), Conor McGregor (UFC Fight Night 26), Dennis Bermudez (UFC 160)
Keys to Victory: Holloway is the most successful high-volume striker in UFC history. He throws and lands more punches than anyone else, drowning his opponents in volume and forcing them to forever play catch up.
Edgar has the most time spent in the Octagon in UFC history, which is a great accomplishment. It also means potential opponents have plenty of film to study, and that the strategies that give Edgar trouble are pretty well established.
This late in his career, Edgar may adapt to those issues, but he cannot change the core of his game entirely.
As such, Holloway’s best bet here is to mimic Jose Aldo and allow Edgar to come to him. From the outside, Holloway can probe with his straight punches and low kicks (Edgar doesn’t like those) from a distance that his shorter foe cannot match. When Edgar is forced to come forward, his entries are a bit more predictable and easier to read, which should be all the opportunity an expert kickboxer like Holloway requires to land well.
Frankie Edgar
Record: 23-6-1
Key Wins: Cub Swanson (UFC Fight Night 128, UFC Fight Night 57), B.J. Penn (TUF 19 Finale, UFC 118, UFC 112), Chad Mendes (TUF 22 Finale), Urijah Faber (UFC Fight Night 66), Gray Maynard (UFC 136), Jeremy Stephens (UFC 205)
Key Losses: Jose Aldo (UFC 200, UFC 156), Brian Ortega (UFC 222), Ben Henderson (UFC 144, UFC 150)
Keys to Victory: Edgar ranks highly among the best in history at blending his takedowns into his striking. Many of his movements present his foe with two distinct threats, a strike or a takedown, and force his opponent to quickly navigate those difficult waters.
Holloway is really the ultimate test of Edgar’s ability to set up the shot. Given Holloway’s length and volume, out-striking the Hawaiian is going to be nearly impossible. To win this fight, Edgar has to put him on his back, and Holloway is quite good at avoiding just that.
It really does come down to set ups. If Edgar can cleanly enter the hips, he’s strong and skilled enough to force Holloway to the mat. It’s two expert skill sets clashing directly: Edgar’s brilliant takedown set ups opposite Holloway’s fantastic ability to angle off as his foe attempts to take a shot.
Since it’s pretty straightforward, the only adjustment I’d like to see Edgar make is to double down on the body shots. This is likely to be a grueling fight, and body work can break down even the most conditioned fighter.
Bottom Line: It should be a pretty great fight.
Holloway is in the odd position of a dominant champion entering a title defense following a loss. As such, this bout is an opportunity for him to remind the Featherweight division just how untouchable he’s been at 145 pounds. In addition, defeating Edgar would be a great name for his resume.
As for Edgar, this really feels like his final shot at gold — though perhaps even with a loss he could make his way down to Bantamweight and give it a shot there. Even then, Edgar is not a young man and has been fighting for a long time. It’s particularly difficult for older man to succeed at these lighter weight classes. With all that in mind, Edgar’s once again in a position to overcome serious odds and capture a world title in the process.
It’s 2010 all over again!
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 240 fight card this weekend, starting with the Fight Pass “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on ESPN 2 at 8 p.m. ET, before the pay-per-view (PPV) main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
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At UFC 240, Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar will go to war in the main event. Which man will leave the cage strapped with gold?