How can Max Holloway get another shot at Alexander Volkanovski? Urijah Faber weighs in

Is there a path back to a featherweight title shot for Max Holloway? [Image Credit: Getty]
Is there a path back to a featherweight title shot for Max Holloway? [Image Credit: Getty]

Earlier this month, Max Holloway impressed UFC fans once again by defeating the Arnold Allen in a five-round thriller.

Max Holloway’s victory over Arnold Allen took his overall UFC record to 20-7. Incredibly, his three losses to current featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski are his only defeats at 145 pounds since his 2013 loss to Conor McGregor.

After his recent win, many fans have been questioning Holloway’s future, with some suggesting he ought to move to lightweight as a fourth shot at Volkanovski seems unlikely to happen.

However, former UFC bantamweight star Urijah Faber, who famously held the WEC featherweight title from 2006 to 2008, suggested that ‘Blessed’ might have a path to a fourth fight with ‘Alexander the Great’ in a recent interview with The Schmo on YouTube:

“I tell all these guys, and I’m the one to point to as an example, you have to keep knocking them down. They line ‘em up, you knock ‘em down, that’s how you get your opportunities. People can say, 'Oh, what about, you already had this shot, you already had that shot...' Just keep winning. 'Cause the guys that deserve their shot, if they can beat you, that’s a different animal.”

Catch the interview below:

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‘The California Kid’ was forced to travel a similar path during his own UFC tenure. After failing to beat Renan Barao for the vacant bantamweight title in 2012, he reeled off four straight wins to put himself in line for a second title fight.

Although Faber lost that fight too, another three-fight streak at 135 pounds moved him into position for another title bout, which saw him fall to his old rival Dominick Cruz in the summer of 2016.

Faber’s advice seems like something Holloway might well take to heart. After all, he has already suggested that he’d be keen on another shot at Volkanovski and still sees himself as the world’s top featherweight:

“I believe I’m the best 145lber in the world...I believe I’m the best fighter in the world.”

The next UFC featherweight title bout will see Volkanovski fight interim champion Yair Rodriguez in July. Max Holloway is sure to be an interested observer, and he could jump back to the front of the queue depending on the result.


How many wins does Max Holloway have in the UFC as a featherweight?

Max Holloway might’ve found his kryptonite in the form of current UFC featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski, but the Hawaiian remains the most successful 145lber in the promotion’s history.

‘Blessed’ holds a total of 19 wins in the octagon at featherweight, more than any other fighter. He also holds the UFC records for the most knockouts in the division's history (8), as well as the most finishes (10).

Holloway holds wins over Yair Rodriguez, Brian Ortega, Arnold Allen and Calvin Kattar, all of whom are currently ranked in the top 10 at 145 pounds. He has also defeated four former UFC champions - Charles Oliveira, Jose Aldo, Anthony Pettis and Frankie Edgar.

The Hawaiian’s only losses at featherweight have come to Dustin Poirier, Dennis Bermudez, Conor McGregor and Volkanovski.

Watch a compilation of Max Holloway’s greatest hits below.

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Edited by Harvey Leonard