Max Holloway Explains Opting Out of 145lbs Title Hunt, Endorses Alexander Volkanovski vs. Ilia Topuria Rematch

Max Holloway believes Alexander Volkanovski deserves an immediate rematch. The Australian lost his UFC Featherweight Champion title when Ilia Topuria bested him at UFC 298. Even though ‘The Great’ has been calling for a rematch since then, he claimed he would be taking some time away from the sport to rest and recuperate after two successive knockout losses.

In the meantime, former UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway began eyeing a return to the division. However, he eventually went on to decline a potential title fight and is currently competing at lightweight for his next fight against Justin Gaethje.

Naturally, Holloway’s decision seemed pretty surprising, but he set the record straight in an interview with Demetrious Johnson on his YouTube channel. During the conversation, Holloway revealed the reason behind him declining a potential title fight, saying,

“My mindset was, if Ilia won, how do you not give Alex a direct rematch? No matter what it is the knockout or a decision. Alex did the body of work to get a direct rematch brother”

Max Holloway then went on to talk about how Alexander Volkanovski wants the rematch and the pair will prefer to wait for a while before facing each other. Such a situation will be detrimental for Holloway as it will leave him hanging dry with no potential opponents. Furthermore, Holloway will have to wait before fighting the winner of the rematch, keeping him out of the action for a long time.

In the same interview, ‘Blessed’ also talked about how he was tired of hearing people say that the UFC needs to protect him from Topuria.

Max Holloway responds to fans who believe the UFC needs to protect him from Ilia Topuria

Max Holloway is infuriated with the way people treat him. The Hawaii believes that he has enough experience to hold his own in the UFC. In the same conversation with Demetrious Johnson, Holloway addressed his fans, speaking about how he does not need protection from anyone. Parry Punch posted the clip on X.

“This whole Ilia talk, a lot of people is harassing me like, ‘Oh my God, he’s gonna kill Max. Don’t give him that.’ ……I’m like, ‘Brother, when I was Ilia’s age, I think I had a title defense already. Or I was fighting for like three titles. Why you telling me shit?”

NEW: Max Holloway responds to fans saying the UFC needs to protect him from featherweight champ Ilia Topuria and says when he was his age, he already had multiple title defenses.

“This whole Ilia talk, a lot of people is harassing me like, ‘Oh my God, he’s gonna kill Max.… pic.twitter.com/pL6Hc23Voi

— Parry Punch (@ParryPunchNews) April 9, 2024

Fans keep telling Max Holloway what to do and he has had enough of it. After over a decade in the UFC, he knows exactly what he is doing. ‘Blessed‘ also insisted that when he was Topuria’s age, he had achieved a lot more than the Spaniard has.