5 reasons why Max Holloway should move to the UFC lightweight division in 2022

#2. The weight cut to 145lbs may begin to affect Max Holloway detrimentally

Max Holloway cuts a potentially dangerous amount of weight to make the 145lbs featherweight limit

Perhaps the biggest reason for Max Holloway to move to 155lbs would be the potential damage that he’s doing to his body by continually cutting to 145lbs.

Sure, Holloway has fought 24 of his 25 UFC bouts at 145lbs and has yet to miss weight outright, but it’s clear that the Hawaiian cuts a lot of weight to hit that mark.

Standing at 5’11”, ‘Blessed’ is one of the larger featherweights on the UFC’s roster, and reports have even suggested that he walks around at around 180lbs when he isn’t preparing for a fight.

Sure, it might’ve been easy for the younger Holloway to make that kind of drastic weight cut without any issues, but at the age of 30 and with a decade of UFC action under his belt, the cut will not get any easier for him.

In fact, the Hawaiian may have already begun to experience problems caused from such a huge weight cut. 2018 saw him withdraw from his planned fight with Brian Ortega at UFC 226 with “concussion-like symptoms”. Although it was never corroborated, this mysterious issue was linked to weight cutting more than once.

With that in mind, then, it’d probably be better for Max Holloway’s health if he were to just move to 155lbs. The 10lbs gap between lightweight and featherweight might seem small, but in this case, it could make all the difference.

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#1. Max Holloway matches up well with current UFC lightweight champ Charles Oliveira

Max Holloway could match up well with Charles Oliveira in a potential UFC lightweight title bout

The UFC is well known to treat its former champions a little differently than the other fighters on its roster, and a well-known company man like Max Holloway is certainly no exception to that rule.

Simply put, Dana White and company love the Hawaiian, and it’s easy to see why. He’s seemingly willing to fight any opponent at any time, never moans about his position on the card, and has never entered into a spat with the promotion over his pay.

That means that were he to move to 155lbs, the UFC would undoubtedly love to reward him with a title shot – perhaps after just one win in the lightweight division.

If ‘Blessed’ could pick up that win, then a fight with current UFC lightweight champ Charles Oliveira could be on the cards – and it’s hard to overlook the idea that Holloway matches up well with ‘Do Bronx’.

Sure, his 2015 win over the Brazilian can probably be discounted – it came due to a freak injury to Oliveira’s throat – but Holloway’s blend of brutal combination striking and underrated grappling would make him a nightmare opponent for the current lightweight king.

It’s hard to imagine Holloway slowing down as Dustin Poirier did in his fight with Oliveira, for instance, nor would it be easy for the Brazilian to catch the Hawaiian in one of his trademark chokes.

If he were to play his cards right, then, Holloway could be just one fight away from a shot at ‘Do Bronx’, and in turn, could only be two fights away from UFC gold. When you consider this, a move to 155lbs for him is almost a no-brainer.