Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight contenders Max Holloway and Anthony Pettis will clash TONIGHT (Dec. 10, 2016) at UFC 206 inside Air Canada Center in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Holloway’s current nine-fight win streak is one of the most impressive in any division. He has earned this opportunity and step up in competition, and the Hawaiian has a chance to capture the biggest win of his career tonight. Meanwhile, this is just Pettis’ second bout at 145 pounds. His performance in his Featherweight debut was strong, but flawed; however, the former Lightweight kingpin can prove that this truly is his new home with a win here despite failing to make weight.
Let’s take a look at the keys to victory for both men:
Max Holloway
Record: 16-3
Key Wins: Ricardo Lamas (UFC 199), Cub Swanson (UFC on FOX 15), Jeremy Stephens (UFC 194), Andre Fili (UFC 172)
Key Losses: Conor McGregor (UFC Fight Night 26), Dennis Bermudez (UFC 160)
Keys to Victory: Holloway is an excellent kickboxer who works from both stances and throws a ton of strikes. He has also become seriously difficult to drag to the mat, as a shot against the Hawaiian is more likely to result in a guillotine than successful takedown.
In this bout, Holloway’s biggest advantage is probably conditioning. Pettis slowed down quite a bit in his last match, and he’s more of a sniper than volume striker, anyway. The longer the fight drags on, the better the odds that Holloway is landing more shots and stealing rounds.
Holloway’s body shots will definitely play a role as well.
Additionally, I’d like to see Holloway deny Pettis his kicks to the body. Pettis almost always stands in the stance opposite to his foe, but Holloway is also a fighter equally skilled from both stances. If Holloway can match his opponent’s stance, it will go a longer way in limiting Pettis’ offense. Without those kicks he relies so heavily upon, Pettis will be forced into more of a boxing match, and that favors the Hawaiian.
VS.
Anthony Pettis
Record: 19-5
Key Wins: Charles Oliveira (UFC on FOX 21), Benson Henderson (UFC 164, WEC 53), Gilbert Melendez (UFC 181), Donald Cerrone (UFC on FOX 6)
Key Losses: Rafael dos Anjos (UFC 185), Eddie Alvarez (UFC Fight Night 81), Edson Barboza (UFC 197)
Keys to Victory: Pettis is a dynamic kickboxer with very slick Brazilian jiu-jitsu. He’s capable of finishing his opponent in any area in an instant, and he’s one of the best opportunists to ever compete.
The question is whether he can find an opening opposite Holloway.
Pettis is at his best when he’s the one leading the dance, walking his foe down and setting up traps. That’s his best strategy here, as it’s also the one Conor McGregor employed to stymie Holloway a couple years back. He may be unable to match his opponent’s volume, but there’s a reason Pettis has finished the vast majority of his wins. His kicks and punches will land harder than his opponent, particularly if Holloway is backed into the fence or circles into a strike.
Holloway is not a fighter who will accept being put on the defensive. Instead, he’ll open up and take more chances, which is precisely what a fighter like Pettis capitalizes on. It could result in a counter shot or scramble, but either way, Pettis will be ready to jump on the finish.
Bottom Line: Interim titles may be losing value rapidly, but this belt guarantees a shot at the real thing.
Holloway earned a real title shot several fights ago, but the top of the division has been jammed up because of Conor McGregor’s other interests outside of the division. With a win here, he proves that he can take out one of the sport’s best strikers, and that he’s ready for a showdown with Jose Aldo. On the other hand, a loss is a definite setback. Holloway is still on the short-list of Featherweight contenders, but he’ll have to look behind him in the ranks to get back into the win column first.
The stakes are high for both men, but this is an especially huge fight for Pettis. He dropped down to 145 pounds with the goal of becoming a champion, and Holloway is a serious roadblock. He made the journey much harder for himself because of the scale fail. Indeed even if Pettis comes out on top, it’s uncertain if he will fight Aldo in 2017. Either way, that’s an awesome fight that almost happened once before, and it would be fantastic should it finally happen. Plus, he’ll have an argument to technically being a two-division champ alongside McGregor, Randy Couture and B.J. Penn.
That said, should Pettis come up short, it calls into question whether or not his drop is worth pursuing in the future. At Lightweight, the title changes hands frequently. There are a few men who have beaten him in that weight class, but other men that Pettis is capable of beating could capture the crown. Meanwhile, Featherweight is historically a much more stable division, and the weight cut is absolutely miserable.
In other words, don’t be surprised if Pettis is back at 155 pounds with a loss tonight.
At UFC 206, Max Holloway and Anthony Pettis will duel in the main event. Which man will receive the Interim strap?