SUMMARY
- Justin Gaethje claimed he had no interest in punching Max Holloway because he liked him as a fighter.
- Despite such a claim, UFC CEO Dana White has announced a fight between Gaethje and Holloway for the BMF title.
Even after Justin Gaethje publicly claimed his resistance to fighting Max Holloway, UFC CEO Dana White announced a BMF title fight between the pair. Holloway is expected to move to lightweight for the second time in his UFC career to face Gaethje at UFC 300.
‘Blessed’ called out Gaethje months ago for a BMF title fight. The 32-year-old fighter billed it as a fight ‘for the fans’. However, Gaethje shut down those call-outs by claiming he did not want to fight Holloway.
The BMF title will be on the line at #UFC300 🚨@Justin_Gaethje & @BlessedMMA collide in a 5-round lightweight bout to see who’s the BADDEST of them all! pic.twitter.com/1TJE1h1cPT
— UFC (@ufc) January 17, 2024
Instead, Gaethje planned on waiting till the summer of 2024 and fighting Islam Makhachev for the UFC Lightweight title. Makhachev also hinted at the plan in a post on X which detailed his upcoming schedule. However, White’s latest UFC 300 announcement has spilled water on those plans.
The UFC 300 card is gaining momentum as several fights for the milestone PPV have been announced. White is set to announce more fights in the coming days.
Justin Gaethje admitted to not wanting to punch Max Holloway
Gaethje defeated Dustin Poirier with an astounding head-kick KO at UFC 291 to win the BMF title. Instead of defending the title, Gaethje was looking to add to it by fighting for the UFC Lightweight title. However, with Makhachev not fighting until summer, Holloway believed Gaethje could take up a fight in the meantime.
‘The Highlight’, however, was not looking to fight Holloway. He told Marc Raimondi, “I don’t ever want to fight Holloway so… I don’t know, I just don’t ever, I don’t want to punch him.
Max Holloway has interest in fighting Justin Gaethje. Oddly enough, Gaethje and I spoke about Holloway as a BMF title challenger in an interview Wednesday 👀 pic.twitter.com/odNgE4ZKT1
— Marc Raimondi (@marcraimondi) October 26, 2023
“I just don’t. It’s not necessary,” he continued. “I like him too much. I like him. He’s a good dude. I don’t know him personally but I’m a fan of his. Yeah, I don’t prefer to punch him, but if I have to, I would, I guess. I expect no mercy in there and I give none so whoever fights me, it is what it is but I don’t prefer it.”
The former featherweight champion last fought at lightweight in the UFC in April 2019. He took on Poirier for the interim lightweight title but lost via unanimous decision. Holloway has a 25-7 record with six of his losses coming via decision and one via submission. ‘Blessed’ has never been knocked out.
Henry Cejudo believes Gaethje can be the first person to knock out Max Holloway
While Holloway is known for a strong chin, Gaethje is known for his insane power. UFC veteran Henry Cejudo believes Gaethje’s power is superior to Holloway’s defense. In a YouTube video, he said, “I love the fact that he’s [Holloway’s] creating a story for the BMF. But when it comes to a guy who throws volume (Holloway) vs. a guy who likes to throw power [Gaethje], and he does it very well, and has been putting people to sleep … He’s too dangerous.
“He’s got too much power for a guy like Max Holloway, he’s going to chop Max Holloway’s legs, he’s going to calf kick him, he’s going to bring in those crazy uppercuts, and he may be the first guy to actually knock out Max Holloway.”
Holloway was the strongest featherweight in the UFC until Alexander Volkanovski came along. The Aussie defeated Holloway thrice to remove the former champion from title contention. Holloway last faced Jung Chan-sung at UFC Fight Night 225 in August 2023 and won via KO. UFC 300 is set to take place on April 13, 2024, at the T-Mobile Arena in Nevada.
