BMF contender, Max Holloway, will be moving up to lightweight for his scrap against Justin ‘The Highlight’ Gaethje at UFC 300. However, this isn’t Holloway’s first venture into the lightweight division.
‘Blessed’ addressed his previous appearance in the division during an interview with analyst Megan Olivi insisting that his his UFC 300 physique will be starkly different. The Hawaiian also used a Daniel Cormier reference to express his dissatisfaction with his previous lightweight physique.
Holloway has always maintained a lean body, but his lightweight physique looks a bit heavy since he primarily fights as a featherweight. Despite that, Blessed’s Daniel Cormier reference might seem a bit harsh, as he said,
“I looked like ‘DC’ [Daniel Cormier] the last time. I looked like a bag of potatoes. This time I got a little bit more muscle. I filled it up [the weight] in the right way”
The comparison with Cormier makes it evident that Holloway wasn’t satisfied with his physique when he faced Dustin ‘The Diamond’ Poirier at UFC 236. His defeat against Poirier might have also contributed to that dissatisfaction. Nevertheless, “Blessed’ is far more confident this time around with a muscle-boosted body and might even overturn the results of his previous lightweight encounter
Will Max Holloway be able to defeat Justin Gaethje at UFC 300?
Although Holloway’s previous lightweight ventures reveal that he hasn’t done well in the division, he does have the expertise to change that. The Hawaiian’s UFC 300 rival, Justin ‘The Highlight’ Gaethje is known to be one of the heaviest strikers in the UFC’s lightweight division, but ‘Blessed’ also packs an iron chin that hasn’t been cracked by any fighter to date.
The current UFC BMF champ may have adopted a more calculative fighting style in recent times. Yet, as his coach Trevor Whitman pointed out, Gaethje often ignores strategy and goes for head-hunting which decreases his striking efficiency.
This is the point that Holloway needs to exploit to inch himself closer to a victory at UFC 300. ‘Blessed’ can gain an advantage over his rival if he keeps pressurizing him constantly. The pressure might even force ‘The Highlight’ to disregard his strategy, thereby increasing The Hawaiian’s chance of claiming his UFC BMF strap.
