Max Holloway defended his “BMF” belt by defeating Dustin Poirier atop the UFC 318 pay-per-view (PPV) event last weekend in New Orleans. The victory leaves “Blessed” on a very short list of eligible title contenders at 155 pounds and perhaps one fight away from a rematch against Ilia Topuria, who captured the lightweight crown by stopping Charles Oliveira at UFC 317 last month in Las Vegas.
“I think he’s in a great position right now,” UFC CEO White said at the UFC 318 post-fight press conference.
“He just defended that BMF title, he’s ranked No. 4 there. Anything is possible for Max right now.”
Holloway, who recently made the “permanent” transition to 155 pounds, may have to take a back seat to fellow lightweight contenders like Arman Tsarukyan and Paddy Pimblett, among others. That said, a non-title fight would also put the Hawaiian in line for this overdue rematch.
“There’s also Oliveira,” Holloway (27-8) told About Last Fight regarding his next lightweight opponent. “I heard he was yapping saying our first fight was with injuries, he had an injury when we fought. Last time I checked, when they did a follow-up and wanted to find what the injury was, there was no injury report on it. They said he was fine. So I have no idea what the hell he is talking about.”
Oliveira (35-11, 1 NC) was stretchered at UFC Fight Night 74 following his “bizarre” loss to Holloway in Saskatoon. The Brazilian claims he was injured before the fight and “everything went numb” after suffering a torn esophagus; however, the hospital released “Do Bronx” after finding no major injuries.
Or maybe his “third world” physicians missed something important.
Fans can expect an update on Holloway’s next booking at some point toward the end of the summer, once matchmakers figure out what direction they're going with Topuria. That’s assuming “El Matador” doesn’t “say no to everyone” and keep the division standing still.
For more UFC 318 news and results click here.
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