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Max Holloway has a new belt to put beside his featherweight championship belts. He's the new "BMF" champion after beating Justin Gaethje by fifth-round knockout on the main card of UFC 300 from Las Vegas.
Everyone had thoughts:
Marc Raimondi @marcraimondiMax Holloway has been in the UFC for 12 years and he's still putting on performances like this. He just slept one of the top contenders a division above him after being one of the best featherweights ever. This is absurd. What a legend. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UFC300?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UFC300</a>
Holloway got off to a strong start in the first stanza. Blessed attacked with a tactical approach. His use of angles and controlled aggression helped him build an early lead. He punctuated the round with a spinning kick that appeared to have damaged Gaethje's nose.
Unfortunately, Holloway's strong performance was marred by two eye pokes in the second round. The fight was paused twice for accidental eye pokes by Holloway leading to some to criticize the referee for not deducting a point:
Regardless, the fight pressed on and so did Holloway's impressive performance. Gaethje had success with leg kicks, but it was Holloway who was impressing his fellow fighters by continuously tagging Gaethje with clean boxing.
Holloway's speed was particularly striking. He used it as a deterrent for Gaethje's aggression as well as a tool to lead off some exchanges.
But it's never good to completely count out Gaethje in any fight. The Highlight reminded everyone why he had the BMF belt in the first place, digging deep to score the first knockdown of Holloway's career in the fourth round.
He landed a right hook behind Holloway's ear to set up an intriguing final round.
As if Holloway needed to make an even bigger statement he invited Gaethje to engage in a wild exchange to end the fight and landed a massive right hand to end the fight with one second left.
Holloway has long been one of the most entertaining fighters in the business. His trademark toughness and high-action fighting style have made him a mainstay on the main event scene for years.
While the BMF belt is mostly a promotional ploy to add some stakes to non-title fights, it's a worthy title for Holloway. He has already cemented a legacy as one of the greatest featherweights of all-time.
Adding a title moment on the historic UFC 300 card is a nice addition to his resume.
He also has a few other things he'd like to put on it.
"I really want my undisputed (featherweight) title back," Holloway said, per Zac Pacleb of UFC.com. "Then, maybe, we can come back up. But I mean, if (UFC matchmakers) give you a (lightweight) title shot right after this one, what do you say?"
The win over Gaethje certainly gives him options.
Current lightweight champion Islam Makhachev doesn't have a title defense and the two have traded barbs recently. However, Ilia Topuria just became the featherweight champion, clearing the way for him to avoid another fight with Alexander Volkanovski and fight for that title again.
Either way, Holloway is currently the "BMF" of the UFC.
