UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway has issued a passionate statement supporting the push for the promotion’s first event in Hawaii According to Honolulu’s Star Advertiser the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) engaged in talks with the UFC…
UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway has issued a passionate statement supporting the push for the promotion’s first event in Hawaii According to Honolulu’s Star Advertiser the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) engaged in talks with the UFC regarding a potential date in the 50th State. State Sen. Glenn Wakai has been attempting to persuade the UFC into arranging […]
Having watched his first shot at Holloway’s featherweight title fall apart due to an injury sustained in camp, Frankie Edgar is looking for a second bite of the apple “The Answer” was set to challenge “Blessed” at UFC 218 …
Having watched his first shot at Holloway’s featherweight title fall apart due to an injury sustained in camp, Frankie Edgar is looking for a second bite of the apple “The Answer” was set to challenge “Blessed” at UFC 218 in Detroit in a bid to join the small club of two weight world champions in […]
UFC 218 was truly a special night for the promotion and its featherweight champion Max Holloway. History no doubt repeated itself as Holloway stopped the long-time former champion Jose Aldo with a third-round TKO to defend his UFC featherweight title in the main event. Many fight fans believe that Aldo is one of the greatest […]
UFC 218 was truly a special night for the promotion and its featherweight champion Max Holloway. History no doubt repeated itself as Holloway stopped the long-time former champion Jose Aldo with a third-round TKO to defend his UFC featherweight title in the main event.
Many fight fans believe that Aldo is one of the greatest fighters of all time, and the greatest featherweight to ever compete in MMA. Now that Holloway has scored two dominant wins over him firmly makes Holloway the man to beat in the 145-pound division.
Longtime UFC commentator Joe Rogan, who spoke recently on his JRE MMA Show podcast, believes Holloway’s win over Aldo didn’t just cement himself as the best featherweight on the planet but also as the best featherweight in history.
“Max Holloway’s performance was nothing short of masterful,” Rogan said (transcript courtesy of MMA Fighting). “Nothing short of masterful, the way he handled Aldo. He yelled at me after he got done with the first round, he looks at me and he goes, ‘The man is tired! The man is tired!’ He’s a motherf**ker. Max Holloway is a real f**king warrior, to the core. That guy relishes it, he loves it.
“When he was chicken-necking it at Aldo and he’s got his hands down and is talking s**t and stalking him, you could see it in Aldo’s face, like he was drowning. You could see the waves were coming and he knew he wasn’t gonna be able to dog-paddle for too long. Like, ‘Jesus Christ, how am I gonna be able to keep up with this guy?’
“He’s the baddest motherf**ker. I think he’s the best 145er ever. He might not agree with it yet because of the record, which I see his point, but the way he fights, the octagon I.Q. that he shows, his fight I.Q., his ability to find a weakness and see it, his predatory behavior inside the octagon, I think he’s the best. I really do. It’s so impressive to me.”
Holloway holds a 15-3 record and currently finds himself on a 12-fight win streak. On the flip side, Aldo has lost three of his last four bouts. Before that though, Aldo had compiled a 25-1 record including an 18-fight win streak.
“Aldo, in his prime, was spectacular and amazingly impressive. His flying knee first-round knockout of Cub Swanson, the knockout of Chad Mendes, the Urijah Faber fight where he brutalized Urijah’s leg, he’s unquestionably one of the greats of all time, but in my opinion, skill wise, Max Holloway has now surpassed him. I think he’s the best.”
Cub Swanson won’t deny the abilities of Max Holloway. Holloway earned a third-round TKO victory in a rematch against Jose Aldo to retain his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight title. Swanson has gone head-to-head with both men and…
Cub Swanson won’t deny the abilities of Max Holloway. Holloway earned a third-round TKO victory in a rematch against Jose Aldo to retain his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight title. Swanson has gone head-to-head with both men and he knows how tough Aldo is. Speaking to MMAJunkie.com, Swanson said Holloway deserves credit for finishing Aldo […]
Max Holloway is happy to take the role of the reigning, defending featherweight kingpin. Last Saturday night (Dec. 2), Holloway defended his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight gold against Jose Aldo in a rematch from their June encounte…
Max Holloway is happy to take the role of the reigning, defending featherweight kingpin. Last Saturday night (Dec. 2), Holloway defended his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) featherweight gold against Jose Aldo in a rematch from their June encounter. Like their first bout, Holloway walked off with gold and he did so via third-round TKO. During […]
In today’s UFC landscape, it’s become increasingly difficult for fighters to break through as actual stars. In fact, only a select few fighters in recent years have transcended audiences and transformed into legit pay-per-view (PPV) draws, but that shouldn’t necessarily be the case. With Ronda Rousey seemingly retired and Jon Jones dealing with yet another […]
In today’s UFC landscape, it’s become increasingly difficult for fighters to break through as actual stars.
In fact, only a select few fighters in recent years have transcended audiences and transformed into legit pay-per-view (PPV) draws, but that shouldn’t necessarily be the case.
With Ronda Rousey seemingly retired and Jon Jones dealing with yet another drug test failure, it could be argued that Georges St. Pierre and Conor McGregor are the only active fighters who could be labeled as superstars, but both fighters have uncertain futures.
With that being said, the UFC is in need of fresh stars, and in my opinion, featherweight champion Max Holloway could fill that void, but he’s yet to break through, which is a bit odd when one takes into account the Hawaiian’s accomplishments and style.
Let’s take a look at five reasons why Holloway should be a bigger star:
Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
Winning Streak
In a sport as dangerous and unpredictable as MMA, it’s difficult for a fighter to continuously put together victories over a long duration of time, but that’s exactly what Holloway has done.
Since a 2013 loss to reigning lightweight champion Conor McGregor, “Blessed” has remained unbeaten, winning 12 straight bouts over top-ranked featherweights including Cub Swanson, Jeremy Stephens, Ricardo Lamas, Anthony Pettis and Jose Aldo. Only four men – Anderson Silva, Georges St. Pierre, Demetrious Johnson, and Jon Jones – have put together longer winning streaks throughout UFC history than Holloway’s current run.
Now of course winning streaks doesn’t always translate to star power, which is best seen with Johnson, but it can certainly help in some cases. Fighters like Silva, St. Pierre and Ronda Rousey gained attention due to the fact that it simply seemed as if they were unbeatable. Legendary boxer Floyd Mayweather also made a career off of boasting about his perfect record.
Holloway has been nothing short of dominant, and it’s time we start giving him the attention he deserves because of that
