3 potential replacements for Max Holloway to fight Yair Rodriguez
Yair Rodriguez reportedly won't be fighting Max Holloway in the scheduled UFC Fight Night bout on July 17. Rodriguez has been left without an opponent after 'Blessed' pulled out of the bout due to an undisclosed injury.
The winner of this highly anticipated bout would most likely have been next in line for a shot at the featherweight title. UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski is scheduled to defend his title against rival TUF coach Brian Ortega later this year.
The bout would also mark the return of Yair Rodriguez, who last fought against Jeremy Stephens in October 2019.
As he looks to return to the octagon after a hiatus of almost two years, let's take a look at potential matchups for 'El Pantera':
#3 Giga Chikadze vs. Yair Rodriguez
Giga Chikadze established himself as a legitimate threat with a spectacular TKO win over Cub Swanson in the co-main event at UFC Vegas 25. Since then, Chikadze has persistently called out top-level competition and offered to be a backup fighter on several occasions.
It is most likely that the fighter from Georgia would jump at the opportunity to fight Yair Rodriguez since he had previously called out 'El Pantera'. After knocking the wind out of Swanson with a vicious 'Giga kick' to the body, Chikadze said in the post-fight interview:
'I’m going to say something I really want to say: If the fans and [UFC President] Dana [White] and [UFC matchmaker] Sean [Shelby] really want to see something special, I think [me] versus Yair Rodriguez will be a real ninja fight. At some point, I believe this fight has to happen. It has to be real Mortal Kombat. I would love this fight, and plus, he’s been pulling out of fights for the last few times, and I’m not that dangerous.”
#2 Edson Barboza vs. Yair Rodriguez
Edson Barboza is back in the win column with a 'Fight of the Night' TKO win over Shane Burgos at UFC 262. In the aftermath of the victory, Barboza has already expressed interest in looking for his next opponent. Barboza even offered to step up as a short-notice replacement for the Holloway vs. Rodriguez fight. Edson Barboza told Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie:
“It’s funny because my social media, people tagging me, they say, ‘Bro, keep ready. Stay ready because I know Yair is gonna be out of the fight.’ But I hope he (doesn’t pull out). I hope he (has) a good camp and fight Holloway. But like I said, I’m back to training. And of course, I still (have) damage in my chin; my foot still hurts a little bit, very light to keep my weight down. And yeah, I don’t need much time to get 100% to fight.”
While Edson Barboza had anticipated replacing Yair Rodriguez, it's likely that Barboza could be facing Rodriguez as his opponent on July 17.
#1 Calvin Kattar vs. Yair Rodriguez
Calvin Kattar is coming off a loss to Max Holloway in what was probably the best performance of Holloway's career. Before his loss against 'Blessed', Kattar had won both his fights in 2020. After a second-round TKO win over Jeremy Stephens at UFC 249 on May 9, 2020, Calvin Kattar defeated Dan Ige via unanimous decision two months later on July 16, 2020.
'The Boston Finisher' had previously offered to replace Yair Rodriguez when the latter pulled out of his scheduled bout against Zabit Magomedsharipov in August 2020. Currently ranked at number five in the featherweight division, it's time for Kattar to step up once again, albeit as Yair Rodriguez's opponent.