“This is what mixed martial arts is all about!”
Anyone else getting deja vu after last night’s Fight of the Year contender between Max Holloway and Yair Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 42? There’s just a few too many similarities between this and the Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler fight from last week’s UFC 268.
Both were total wars with neither man giving an inch. Absolute battles, with each man giving and receiving massive amounts of damage. Both went to decision, both won Fight of the Night bonuses. Both winners will probably fight for their respective titles next.
All four men were rushed to the hospital immediately after their bouts. And they all took the time to take a selfie en route to getting checked out.
More proof 2021 is just a glitch in the Matrix? I think so.
Okay, so things were slightly different this time around. While Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler waited until they were in the hospital for their post-war photo, Max Holloway climbed into Yair Rodriguez’s ambulance to get their picture taken. And the UFC social media crew was on hand to capture the moment on video:
“YAIR! You frickin’ animal.”
Holloway and Rodriguez embraced before being transported to the hospital #UFCVegas42 (via @UFCEspanol) pic.twitter.com/KR7QP0GcSx
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 14, 2021
Max Holloway seemed genuinely thrilled to have shared the cage with Yair Rodriguez for 25 minutes. We were thrilled to witness it, but to be on the receiving end of so many sneaky back elbows, kicks, and a rolling thunder and still come out smiling like that? Dana White is right: Max IS a lunatic!
?@BlessedMMA? and ?@panteraufc? both taking a ride to the hospital. Max climbed in to Yair’s ambulance to congratulate Yair for one of the best fights ever. pic.twitter.com/Sl8m9O75aC
— Reed Harris (@reedharrisufc) November 13, 2021