UFC president Dana White isn’t currently open to considering a potential rematch, even though both combatants appear to want it.
There has been a lot of chatter in the MMA community about a fight between former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor and ex-featherweight champion Max Holloway. They originally fought in 2013 at 145 pounds and “Notorious” defeated Holloway by unanimous decision. Fast forward eight years and the two fighters have been poking at each other on social media this past week.
Holloway, who is ranked No. 1 at featherweight, competed on Saturday, November 13, against Yair Rodriguez and won by unanimous decision. After the fight, he reiterated that one of the fighters he’s interested in competing against next is McGregor.
GettyConor McGregor is announced the winner against Max Holloway in their featherweight bout at TD Garden on August 17, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts.
White spoke with the media after UFC Fight Night 197 about “Blessed” and his immediate fighting future.
Without directly saying that Holloway is next for UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski, the UFC president alluded to setting up the trilogy fight next. Blessed is 0-2 against Volkanovski, but many scored the second fight for Holloway and after two back-to-back impressive victories, Holloway deserves another crack at regaining his belt.
“It’s one of those things – it was razor thin, (Holloway) just comes in and puts on a performance like this,” White said via MMA Junkie. “This is just a guy that Volkanovski’s going to have to just him out of the way and do it again.”
White also brushed off the idea of Holloway fighting McGregor next since Notorious is still recovering from the broken leg he sustained in July 2021 against Dustin Poirier.
“I don’t know what’s next for Max, but it does make sense to see him and Volkanovski again,” White said. “Conor’s not even – Conor’s still hurt. To even talk about Conor is silly.”
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McGregor Ripped Holloway’s ‘Best Boxer’ Claim
GettyConor McGregor elbows Max Holloway on the ground in their featherweight bout at TD Garden on August 17, 2013 in Boston, Massachusetts.
Holloway is the self-proclaimed “best boxer in MMA,” a title he gave himself while putting on a punching clinic against Calvin Kattar earlier this year. Well, Notorious doesn’t think Holloway is deserving of the accolade. In a series of now-deleted tweets, McGregor ripped Holloway for his relatively high significant strikes absorbed per minute stat, which currently sits at 4.58, according to UFC Stats.
“Hey twitter!” McGregor tweeted hours before Holloway’s fight with Rodriguez via MMA Junkie.
“The fighter that has absorbed the most head strikes in @ufc history competes tonight. Max Holloway. Can’t wait to watch.”
“Best boxer my a** crack,” McGregor continued. “The guys been smacked the most smacks in ufc history! Most shots absorbed is not best boxer guys I’m sorry, and I love the kid.”
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Holloway Has Better Significant Strikes Landed & Absorbed Rates Than McGregor
GettyMax Holloway (R) kicks Calvin Kattar in a featherweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at Etihad Arena on UFC Fight Island on January 16, 2021 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Interestingly, McGregor actually has a higher rate of significant strikes absorbed per minute compared to Holloway, with his at 4.66 according to the official stats website. And in terms of significant strikes landed per minute, Holloway has a higher output with a rate of 7.26 compared to McGregor’s 5.32.
Holloway also holds the UFC record for most significant strikes landed in a bout, cracking Kattar 445 times.
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Dana White Rejects Talk of UFC Blockbuster Fight: ‘Silly’