Tag: Max Holloway vs. Frankie Edgar

New UFC 222 Poster Is Out – Is It Better Than The First?

Earlier this week, March 3’s UFC 222 from Las Vegas got a late-notice main event when news came that women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg would be meeting Invicta FC bantamweight champ Yana Kunitskaya. Back when the event was scheduled to be headlined by an anticipated featherweight title clash between champion Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar, […]

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Earlier this week, March 3’s UFC 222 from Las Vegas got a late-notice main event when news came that women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg would be meeting Invicta FC bantamweight champ Yana Kunitskaya.

Back when the event was scheduled to be headlined by an anticipated featherweight title clash between champion Max Holloway and Frankie Edgar, the promotion drew a large amount of criticism for the original poster online for what was viewed as having a very weak fight between heavyweights Andrei Arlovski and Stefan Struve as the co-main event.

Well, they released an all-new, revamped poster today, and it’s safe to say it does look at least a little bit better now that Edgar moved into the co-headliner versus surging young contender Brian Ortega. Check it out right here:

With Cyborg a justifiable -1000 betting favorite heading into her bout with Kunitskaya, who will make her UFC debut, the general opinion is that she’s going to run through the Invicta bantamweight champ like she’s run through the rest of her opponents.

That’s really all there is in the UFC’s women’s featherweight division right now, however, so in that sense, it’s business as usual.

But the co-main between Edgar and Ortega is a great fight, one where Edgar is taking all of the risk in fighting a highly dangerous opponent to essentially save his spot as the No. 1 contender. That itself has made the new UFC 222 poster much better than the first.

Is it enough to get you to pay for the card?

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UFC 222 Could Be Canceled Without Replacement Title Fight

With news surfacing last weekend that featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his UFC 222 main event against Frankie Edgar, the UFC was left scrambling to find a suitable headliner for the March 3 pay-per-view. A bantamweight rematch between champion TJ Dillashaw and former champ Cody Garbrandt was rumored but was thrown aside by […]

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With news surfacing last weekend that featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his UFC 222 main event against Frankie Edgar, the UFC was left scrambling to find a suitable headliner for the March 3 pay-per-view.

A bantamweight rematch between champion TJ Dillashaw and former champ Cody Garbrandt was rumored but was thrown aside by Dillashaw, who said he wasn’t prepared and that ‘No Love’ had to work his way back to a title shot. Edgar, meanwhile, was tabbed to face surging featherweight Brian Ortega on the card despite rumors of him also facing Garbrandt, and it appears that fight is still close to a reality.

However, the event itself may not be, as MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani reported earlier today that although Edgar vs. Ortega looks close to official, UFC 222 could be changed to a Fight Night card with that fight headlining if a PPV-level title fight is not able to be booked. With Dillashaw vs. Garbrandt II off the books, an attempt to book women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg also unsuccessful, and viable options wearing thin as time grows short, the event could possibly be canceled altogether as a last resort:

So much is still up in the air for UFC 222, but true top-level options in terms of a legitimate title fight on such short notice are few and far between – if available at all.

It may only be February, but the UFC has already seen two title fights fall apart due to injury, not a great sign for a year where they need headliners to go off without a hitch arguably more than ever.

Will they be able to save UFC 222?

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Conor McGregor Reacts To Max Holloway’s UFC 222 Pullout

The MMA world was dealt collective disappointment yesterday when word arrived that UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his scheduled UFC 222 main event versus Frankie Edgar. The tough-as-nails champion wanted to fight no matter what, detailing what he said would go through in order to meet Edgar in a month’s […]

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The MMA world was dealt collective disappointment yesterday when word arrived that UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway had been forced out of his scheduled UFC 222 main event versus Frankie Edgar.

The tough-as-nails champion wanted to fight no matter what, detailing what he said would go through in order to meet Edgar in a month’s time. But ultimately he simply could not compete in the alotted timeframe.

The UFC set out to replace the March 3 fight card’s main event with two high-profile bouts, seeking to book bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw against former teammate Cody Garbrandt in a rematch of their UFC 217 affair with Edgar then taking on surging contender Brian Ortega in the co-main.

Dillashaw turned the bout down, however, citing the birth of his child and lack of training before mocking ‘No Love’ with a brutal photo from his knockout win last November.

And it remains an uncertain spot for the promotion and the rapidly-approaching event, but the mocking surrounding the card didn’t stop there. UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor got in on the action by trolling Holloway with a photo from his 2013 win over “Blessed”:

When there is no referee to save you.

A post shared by Conor McGregor Official (@thenotoriousmma) on

‘The Notorious’ loves to rub salt in the wounds of his former opponents, yet it’s understandable if fans asked whether he should be doing so with his fighting future still very much up in the air as he acts a fool with his newfound mega-riches from boxing Floyd Mayweather.

This injury is bad timing for Holloway for sure, but the young Hawaiian has been a model of consistency for the UFC during his rise to championship status. He’s also stated he’s willing to take on any and all comers as champion, something that would most likely be true if he wasn’t hurt.

The same simply cannot be said for McGregor, who campaigned for a UFC bout versus Mayweather this week rather than a title defense against the winner of Tony Ferguson vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Is it time for McGregor to stop kicking willing fighters while they’re down and get back to fighting in MMA himself? Did that time pass long ago?

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Report: Two Huge Replacement Fights Targeted For UFC 222

Earlier today the UFC saw another high-profile title fight fall apart when it was announced featherweight champ Max Holloway had been forced out of his UFC 222 main event versus Frankie Edgar due to injury. The news was extra concerning given that UFC 222 had few other anticipated bouts on the card, but according to […]

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Earlier today the UFC saw another high-profile title fight fall apart when it was announced featherweight champ Max Holloway had been forced out of his UFC 222 main event versus Frankie Edgar due to injury.

The news was extra concerning given that UFC 222 had few other anticipated bouts on the card, but according to MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani, the UFC is working on making the card potentially even bigger by adding replacement bouts to the March 3 event from Las Vegas.

Apparently, the UFC is looking to book TJ Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt II for the bantamweight in a rematch of their UFC 217 grudge match, while still giving Edgar to fight on the card against top contender Brian Ortega:

But after Dillashaw knocked out Garbrandt in November, rumors surfaced he was waiting for his oft-teased super fight with record-breaking flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson, a fight that has been discussed for July’s UFC 226.

Helwani spoke to Dillashaw’s coach Duane “Bang” Ludwig, who reiterated they’re still aiming for “Mighty Mouse” because Garbrandt needs to earn a rematch:

Garbrandt fired back at Ludwig’s suggestion, presumably trying to goad Dillashaw into taking a rematch by suggesting he had been nearly out towards the end of the first round of their first bout, something that may be true but also remains a moot point considering Dillashaw came back to finish “No Love” in the second.

Regardless, Garbrandt quickly clapped back by saying he had accepted and the ball was in their camp’s court:

Nothing official has been announced by the promotion for UFC 222’s replacement main event, yet it appears something big is in the works.

Is a bantamweight title rematch the right fight to make? Does the UFC have another option?

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Sources: Max Holloway Injured, Out Of UFC 222

This is why we can’t have nice things in MMA. Weeks after middleweight champion Robert Whittaker was forced out of his UFC 221 headliner versus Luke Rockhold with an undisclosed injury that was eventually revealed to be a serious staph infection, another high-profile UFC champ has reportedly been forced from an upcoming main event. According […]

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This is why we can’t have nice things in MMA.

Weeks after middleweight champion Robert Whittaker was forced out of his UFC 221 headliner versus Luke Rockhold with an undisclosed injury that was eventually revealed to be a serious staph infection, another high-profile UFC champ has reportedly been forced from an upcoming main event.

According to a report from ESPN.com, sources have revealed featherweight champ Max Holloway has suffered an injury that has left him unable to defend the title in his awaited match-up with longtime contender Frankie Edgar at March 3’s UFC 222.

The UFC has not officially pulled Holloway from the card but is expected to do so shortly according to the report.

MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani also confirmed the report, revealing the details that Holloway suffered a leg injury in training.

Officials are supposedly looking for a replacement bout to headline the otherwise thin card, which drew a heavy amount of vitriol online for its Andrei Arlovski vs. Stefan Struve co-main event.

Holloway vs. Edgar was supposed to go down at December’s UFC 218 from Detroit, but an injury to Edgar forced him out and he was replaced by longtime former champion Jose Aldo, whom Holloway stopped for the second time in a year in his first official title defense.

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Pic: The UFC 222 Poster Is Out & Fans Are Going Nuts

Seeking to extend his 12-fight win streak, UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway will face former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar in the main event of March 3’s UFC 222 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. The fight is a rebooking of their previously-scheduled match in the main event of December 2’s UFC 218, where Holloway […]

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Seeking to extend his 12-fight win streak, UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway will face former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar in the main event of March 3’s UFC 222 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The fight is a rebooking of their previously-scheduled match in the main event of December 2’s UFC 218, where Holloway stopped late replacement Jose Aldo, the longtime champion whom he originally won the belt from last June, after Edgar suffered an orbital injury in training and was forced to pull out.

This week the UFC released the official fight poster for the marquee featherweight main event but based on the reaction from fans, it’s not that fight that’s getting all of the publicity (and heat) on social media. No, the fight directly below Holloway vs. Edgar, a Stefan Struve vs. Andrei Arlovski heavyweight co-main event, is the one that’s causing a minor uprising.

And it may be tough to blame the fans, because while Struve vs. Arlovski is certainly a heavyweight throwdown that could not only be exciting but end with a huge knockout, the fight isn’t exactly a pay-per-view-worthy co-main event, at least not in the eyes of many.

What’s more, the booking comes during a time when the promotion has been accused of watering down cards to fill the packed, slogging schedule which many fans have said is sapping their commitment to MMA, something that probably wasn’t enhanced by the UFC recently raising prices for pay-per-view shows. PPV sales were lower than they had been in years throughout 2017 as well, with a precipitous dropoff from the banner 2016 coming just when new owners Endeavor had taken over control of the UFC.

So while fans believed Struve vs. Arlovski was a great bout for a Fight Night or Fight Pass-aired card, putting it in the co-main event of a numbered and costly pay-per-view event has the UFC faithful offering some stiff opinions on the matter. Check it out right here and let us know yours:

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