Israel Adesanya's coach explains why it makes sense for Max Holloway to pursue fight against Conor McGregor instead of title shot
Max Holloway recently defeated Yair Rodriguez via unanimous decision in an instant classic at UFC Vegas 42. Prior to his matchup against Rodriguez, 'Blessed' hinted at a potential rematch against Conor McGregor. The duo previously met more than eight years ago when McGregor reeled in a decision victory despite tearing his ACL early in the bout.
Israel Adesanya's coach, Eugene Bareman, has now weighed in on a potential rematch between Max Holloway and Conor McGregor. According to Bareman, it makes sense for the Hawaiian to pursue a matchup against McGregor over a title shot against Alexander Volkanovski. Bareman told Submission Radio:
"Um, I don't have too much to think about that. Like Max [Holloway] is just playing it cool and it's just a bit of gamesmanship. Um, who wouldn't keep their door open for a [Conor] McGregor fight. That's one of the only fights in the sport that would probably warrant or that people would consider taking over a title fight. So yeah, that's just part and parcel of the landscape nowadays. So if that doesn't eventuate for Max then there's only one fight that Max really wants, let's not kid ourselves."
Catch Eugene Bareman's interview with Submission Radio below:
Eugene Bareman believes Alexander Volkanovski is likely to fight Max Holloway
Alexander Volkanovski previously defeated Max Holloway on two occasions, snatching the belt from 'Blessed' at UFC 245 and defending it at UFC 251. After a successful title defense against Brian Ortega at UFC 266, the featherweight king has hinted at a move up to 155 lbs.
Alexander Volkanovski beats Max Holloway AGAIN
Retains featherweight title
#UFC251 https://t.co/y096y3sMva
However, Eugene Bareman believes Volkanovski will accept the best available opponent before moving up a weight class. According to Bareman, Alexander Volkanovski is likely to fight Max Holloway as the latter seems to be the best challenger in the featherweight division. Bareman further told Submission Radio:
"S*** I didn't know Volk [Alexander Volkanovski] had been mentioning 155 [lbs]. No, no, he's gonna fight whoever's available in his weight division. I'm pretty certain of that. If it's not Max there's actually some very good contenders coming up. Like [Giga] Chikadze and there's a few others. So there's options there for Volk but obviously you tend to lean towards whoever they think is the best person and the best challenger in the division. And the consensus is that it seems to be Max at the moment."