UFC Legend Supports Volkanovski Rematch Against Ilia Topuria

The former featherweight champion is happy to wait for an opportunity to reclaim his belt.

Max Holloway would love to challenge newly-crowned UFC featherweight champion Ilia Topuria, but he won’t be surprised if Alexander Volkanovski gets a chance to reclaim his belt first. 

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Last weekend’s UFC 298 main event saw Topuria claim UFC gold when he handed Volkanovski his first featherweight loss. In the aftermath of that card, fans are eager to see which fighter will get to hand “El Matador” the first loss of his career.

Former featherweight king Holloway recently shared a confused reaction to Luke Thomas’ suggestion that Yair Rodriguez should get the next title shot if he beats Brian Ortega this weekend, and  “Blessed” also provided a simple response when a fan suggested he should have waited for a chance to fight Topuria. 

Never waited for anything always earned it. I always believed if volk was to lose the title he’ll prolly get immediate rematch anyway.

— Max Holloway (@BlessedMMA) February 22, 2024

Holloway claimed the UFC featherweight title from José Aldo in 2017, but after he successfully defended the belt twice, the 32-year-old lost to Volkanovski at UFC 245 and came up short in their immediate rematch and a trilogy fight at UFC 276.

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“Blessed” is now set to move up to lightweight for the second time to challenge Justin Gaethje for the BMF title in the co-main event of UFC 300, and the outcome of that fight could dictate when and if Holloway moves back down to featherweight to take on Topuria.

Plenty of fans would love to see Holloway try to reclaim the featherweight belt now that Volkanovski is no longer champion, but even though the Hawaiian could provide a significant challenge for Topuria, the unbeaten fighter doesn’t seem especially eager to take on the division’s top contenders.

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