If Alex Volkanovski, a relative newcomer when compared to the rest of the 145-pound division, was expecting to secure a shot at the featherweight title — and bump a legend like Frankie Edgar in the process — then he was going to need to do something spectacular.
Like faceplant former division kingpin, Jose Aldo.
Instead, “The Great” went to a three-round decision against “Junior” and while he emerged victorious in the UFC 237 co-main event, it may not have been the statement win that UFC matchmakers were looking for.
That’s according to current champion, Max Holloway.
“The UFC was holding off for that Alex and Jose fight and I think they wanted to see something more, I don’t know,” Holloway said (via Hawaii News Now). “Maybe they put him in the oven to let him bake a little more for me. Look at what I had to do, you know? I had to bake in the oven for a bit. I think they had the temperature on at about 200 (degrees) or something. It is what it is. I can’t wait. If that’s the guy and that’s the date, that’s the date. But first things first: We got ‘The Answer’ and I got a bunch of questions so I can’t wait.”
He won’t … but Volkanovski will.
Holloway is expected to make his next title defense when Edgar (finally) meets him in the upcoming UFC 240 pay-per-view (PPV) headliner, scheduled for Sat, July 27, 2019 inside Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
As for Volkanovski, he’s expected to sit out and face the winner later this year in his backyard of Australia, assuming Holloway vs. Edgar doesn’t end in a draw or produce some other cockamamie result.