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#4. The durability of Max Holloway and Yair Rodriguez will lead to a potential FOTY
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Max Holloway and Rodriguez both have insane durability. In 28 professional fights, Max Holloway has never been finished by strikes. In fact, the Hawaiian has only been defeated once by submission, and it came at the hands of Dustin Poirier in his UFC debut back in 2012.
Max Holloway has also shown that he has an extraordinary chin. That notion was certainly put to the test when he moved up in weight to face his former opponent Dustin Poirier for the interim lightweight title. While he was unsuccessful in his quest for a second title, the former featherweight champion showed a granite chin during the contest.
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Yair Rodriguez is also extremely durable. He has lost only once in the UFC - to Frankie Edgar. Despite the defeat, Rodriguez showed incredible toughness.
Before his fight with Edgar, Yair Rodriguez had amassed a substantial six-fight winning streak in the UFC. The featherweight managed to outpoint Dan Hooker and finish the legendary BJ Penn with a headkick.
In his fight against former lightweight champion Edgar, Rodriguez found himself in trouble as the reactive takedowns of Edgar kept him on his back for far too long. The fight would last two rounds before a doctor waived the contest off after the ground and pound damage to Rodriguez's eye rendered him unable to see out of it. When it comes to durability, these two have it.
#3. Max Holloway and Yair Rodriguez have something to prove
Each combatant fighting on November 13 has a lot to prove. Max Holloway will need a spectacular performance to reinstate himself as the clear number one contender at featherweight. With rising contenders like Giga Chikadze, Arnold Allen and former nemesis Brian Ortega, the featherweight division has never been more ripe with talent.
For Max Holloway, it's a matter of proving that he's still the number one contender and the uncrowned champion. At 145-pounds, Max Holloway joined rarefied air after earning two TKO victories against the former featherweight king Jose Aldo.
For Yair Rodriguez, the 145-pound fighter is under pressure to remind the division why he sits at the No. 3 in the division. Having not competed since facing Jeremy Stephens in 2019, many new contenders have emerged. With a pattern of inactivity present throughout his résumé, 'El Pantera' will need to shake the ring rust off when it comes time to face the former titleholder.
Rodriguez finished Chan Sung Jung with a buzzer-beater knockout in the fifth round back in 2018. Interestingly, he had lost a few rounds throughout the contest, so he likely would have lost on the judge's scorecards had the bout continued. In a wild striking sequence in the final round, he scored the knockout with a modified spinning elbow.
The last time Rodriguez had his back against the wall with something to prove, he showed up and earned arguably the best win of his UFC career against 'The Korean Zombie'.
