Max Holloway keen on fourth fight against Alexander Volkanovski

This weekend will see Max Holloway return to the octagon, as he will face off against Arnold Allen in the main event of a UFC Fight Night set for Kansas City, Missouri.

Holloway will clearly have his hands full with Allen this weekend, but ‘Blessed’ already seems to have his heart set on a fourth clash with UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.

In a recent interview with former UFC women's featherweight title contender Megan Anderson, the Hawaiian reaffirmed his belief that despite three losses to ‘The Great’, he is still the best 145-pounder in the world:

“A lot of people are confused, they're saying, 'Oh, we don’t see how you can get an Alex [Volkanovski] 4,' but if... the UFC really felt that way then I think they would’ve forced my hand to go up in a weight class... I believe I’m the best 145lber in the world... I believe I’m the best fighter in the world... that’s the type of mentality you need in this sport. If you’re not thinking that or believing that, then you might as well retire.”

Anderson also brushed upon the fact that Holloway was overlooked for the recent interim featherweight title bout, which instead saw Yair Rodriguez defeat Josh Emmett to set up a unification bout with Volkanovski.

Holloway, who defeated Rodriguez via unanimous decision in 2022, simply shrugged and used his trademark line, “it is what it is.”

‘Blessed’ has not fought since his loss to Volkanovski in July 2022, but if he defeats Arnold Allen this weekend, it’d be hard not to consider him the top contender in the featherweight division.

Remarkably, he has not lost to a 145-pounder outside of Volkanovski since his 2013 loss to Conor McGregor.

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What happened in the first three fights between Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski?

Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski first fought at UFC 245 in December 2019. Despite Holloway being favored to retain his featherweight title, Volkanovski produced a wonderful performance and won the bout via unanimous decision.

The UFC signed an immediate rematch between the two seven months later at UFC 251. Despite the fight being much closer, with many fans scoring it for Holloway, Volkanovski was awarded a split-decision win, retaining the title.

Max Holloway then bounced back by defeating Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez in back-to-back fights, showing tremendous improvement in his boxing skills in the process.

However, he was outclassed by ‘The Great’ in their third fight, which took place at UFC 276 last July.

Max Holloway has not fought since, meaning his bout with Arnold Allen this weekend will be his first in nine months.