Max Holloway plans to take a leaf out of Alex Pereira's book after career's first knockout loss: "Let's mimic him"
Max Holloway suffered his first knockout loss at UFC 308. Known for having one of the most resilient chins in UFC history, Holloway had never been knocked out until Ilia Topuria managed to drop and finish him in the third round of their title clash.
Now, ‘Blessed’ plans to bounce back from this loss, drawing inspiration from reigning light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. Notably, Pereira suffered his first career knockout loss to longtime rival Israel Adesanya at UFC 287 in their rematch and went on to build an impressive legacy at light heavyweight.
In a video uploaded to his YouTube channel, the Hawaiian mentioned that he wants to follow in ‘Poatan’s' footsteps after his knockout loss, aiming to replicate similar success in permanent move to the lightweight division.
“We saw Alex Pereira get finished... Next fight he fought for a #1 contender spot, [then he] fought for the title and he's on a spectacular title run… Let's mimic him. Let's do it. I get inspiration in that. He's a beast."
Check out Max Holloway’s comments below:
Pereira beat Jan Blachowicz following his KO loss to Adesanya and then won the 205-pound title with his victory over Jiri Prochazka last year. In 2024, 'Poatan' defended his belt thrice, with him and Topuria being the frontrunners for Fighter of the Year.
Daniel Cormier suggests four potential opponents for Max Holloway's next fight
Daniel Cormier, who shares a close relationship with BMF titleholder Max Holloway, backed the Hawaiian's decision to move up in weight following his loss at featherweight. However, Cormier also advised Holloway to take it slow and avoid fighting Dustin Poirier for a third time
In the latest episode of 'Good Guy/Bad Guy' with Chael Sonnen, Cormier, when asked about Holloway's decision to move up and who ‘Blessed’ should face next, answered:
“When you look at the rankings, right now he’s number five and he’s asking for Dustin Poirier. That would be absolutely fantastic, but is there a better way to introduce Max Holloway into the lightweight division? Do we put him in there with Dustin for a third time?”
'DC' added:
“Or do we see what happens with Michael Chandler after he fights against Charles Oliveira? Or do we start to kind of look down the rankings a little bit and say, ‘Well, it would be fun to watch him fight a Rafael Fiziev. It would be fun to watch him fight a Benoit Saint-Denis. It would be fun to watch him fight a Paddy Pimblett.”
Check out Daniel Cormier’s comments below (12:38):