Max Holloway fight: Ranked UFC featherweight challenges after two opponents pull out

Max Holloway hasn't had a fight since his third title loss to Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 276 in July 2022. 'Blessed' has now received a callout from the up-and-coming Giga Chikadze, who is known for his explosiveness inside the octagon.

Chikadze shifted his focus to Holloway after back-to-back bookings fell through due to his opponents' injuries. 'Ninja' wrote on Twitter:

"One is injured, another just got injured! You Max @BlessedMMA do you wanna fight? I think we can make a good show. LMK… @ufc @danawhite"

Chikadze was initially rumored to be booked against Chan Sung Jung for a UFC Fight Night clash at the latter's home ground in Seoul on February 24. However, 'The Korean Zombie' will seemingly be unable to compete due to a shoulder injury.

'Ninja' was then reportedly booked against Sodiq Yusuff in April, rebooking a September 2022 clash that fell through. However, Yusuff recently reported being out of action due to an epidural shot to his spine. Epidural spinal shots are powerful anti-inflammatory medicines injected into the epidural space near the spine. Yusuff said in an exclusive interview with Combat Sports Nigeria:

"Yeah yeah, I’ll be good, man. I’m one of those guys, if you don’t hear about me [fighting], it’s usually because of an injury but it’s part of the job description. Right now, I’m not gonna lie, from the way the shot is feeling, I feel pretty good. It might be wishful thinking for March."

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Max Holloway fight: Alexander Volkanovski believes 'Blessed' can still beat most elite featherweights

Alexander Volkanovski asserted his dominance over the featherweight division once and for all with his third title win over Max Holloway at UFC 276. While Volkanovski completely outclassed Holloway in the trilogy fight, 'Blessed' has registered Fight of the Night classic wins over Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez.

While Rodriguez is scheduled to fight Josh Emmett for the interim featherweight title at UFC 284 in February, Kattar delivered a lopsided beatdown on Giga Chikadze in his last outing.

Hence, Volkanovksi might not be wrong in claiming that Max Holloway still beats most of the top dogs at featherweight. The UFC P4P king recently told The AllStar:

"I still think he was a great champ. I still think he’s a great fighter, and I still think he beats most of the top guys, anyway... So I feel like you’re going to start seeing these other guys that are rising up, really start to get up there, anyway. But I still think Max"

Catch Volkanovski's comments on Max Holloway below: