"I have been fighting my whole life": Max Holloway unconcerned about limited prep before UFC 251
Max Holloway opened up a can of worms when he revealed his limited preparation for the upcoming rematch against Alexander Volkanovski. Volkanovski himself stated not believe a word of it, but 'Blessed' has now claimed that this won't be an issue.
Max Holloway had told ESPN MMA that he didn't participate in any sparring sessions and didn't even work with his coaches in person. These were tough choices that Max Holloway had to make in order to protect everyone during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The #1 ranked UFC featherweight recently said -
“I know everybody’s blowing their mind, tripping out. I’ve been fighting my whole life. I’ve been fighting since I was 16. That’s a long time. I did a lot of sparring in that time. In the beginning of my career, all I really did was spar. This is another fight, at the end of the day.”
Max Holloway will face Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski in the co-main event of UFC 251 at Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
This is a rematch of their bout back at UFC 245, which saw Volkanovski crowned as the new Featherweight Champion as he defeated Max Holloway via unanimous decision. Volkanovski had been 7- 0 in the UFC coming into their first match and extended that streak against a dominant champion in Max Holloway.
Max Holloway on the first fight
Max Holloway still feels that he won the first meeting but has refused to complain or make up some excuse.
The former Featherweight Champion said -
“Never leave a fight to the judges; they’ll make you cry. No excuses. I thought I did enough, but obviously it wasn’t. There’s three guys’ decisions that matter. They all went the other way. When (Saturday) comes, I get to prove that I’m one of the best guys in the world still, and I just can’t wait. This time, I’m going in there and do my thing, and hopefully we won’t need the judges.”
Max Holloway has said that he learned a lot during their 25-minute encounter inside the Octagon and that he is looking forward to Saturday. He also stated that he is not taking anything Volkanovski says too seriously ahead of the fight.
“Last time, before the fight, he said he was going to take me down and TKO me, and we all know that didn’t happen, so I’m just ready for the best version of him. I can’t wait to go out there and do my thing.”