Max Holloway “Blessed” With the Chance of A Lifetime At UFC On Fox 15

By Adam Martin

Max Holloway has been climbing the featherweight rankings for a while now, but up until now he has never been able to get over the hump. But this Saturday night at UFC on FOX 15, the young Hawaiian has an opportunity in front of him that he earned and that the UFC “blessed” him with. If he can take full advantage of it by picking up the biggest win of his UFC tenure, it’s an opportunity that could change his career.

Getting the chance to take on a top contender like Cub Swanson, who Holloway faces on the UFC on FOX 15 main card, isn’t an opportunity that grows on trees. In the last two years, Swanson has fought only three times (which indicates this is a guy who is careful at managing his career) and all three fights were against top-15-ranked featherweights in Frankie Edgar, Dennis Siver, and Jeremy Stephens. Clearly, this is someone who is only interested in fighting people who will get him one step closer to a title shot.

Swanson beat Siver and Stephens to earn himself a title eliminator against Edgar, but he was outright destroyed against “The Answer” at UFC Fight Night 57, and all of a sudden Swanson has gone from being a top title contender at 145 lbs to being a complete afterthought in the division. However, he still remains highly ranked, and while he won’t be fighting for the belt anytime soon, he still needs to keep his ranking if he wants to keep his pay the same.

Holloway, though, is climbing the ranks at 145 very quickly, and he desperately wants to defeat Swanson and take his spot in the top 10 of the division. Entering this fight riding a five-fight win streak, the 23-year-old Holloway is quickly emerging as a contender in the featherweight division, but despite his impressive win streak, he still lacks a marquee name on his resume.

The three other times Holloway stepped up to fight top-15 talent, he lost. He was tapped out in his UFC debut by Dustin Poirier at UFC 143, he was defeated by decision by Dennis Bermudez at UFC 146, and then he was beaten up badly for three rounds by Conor McGregor at UFC Fight Night 26. He’s picked up five-straight wins, but none of the fighters Holloway has beaten during his current run are ranked, making it imperative that he take advantage of this opportunity of a lifetime against Swanson.

For Holloway, beating Swanson would push him into a top-10 position in the rankings which, coupled with the UFC moving to a tier system to dole out its Reebok sponsor money, means a pay bump. It also means he’ll probably get more money from the UFC when he signs his next fight contract. So for Holloway, beating Swanson is the key to fame and riches.

For Swanson, though, the win doesn’t do much. Even if Swanson knocks Holloway out, it won’t move him up the rankings since he’s already ranked above his opponent significantly. He’ll of course keep his spot in the top 10 and therefore get his Reebok sponsor bonus, but the win doesn’t elevate him to a title shot or anything like that. In many ways, it’s a lose-lose situation for Swanson, and further proof this fight against Holloway is ultra-dangerous for him to take.

However, this is still going to be a very interesting encounter. Both Swanson and Holloway are exceptional strikers, and most would figure this fight stays on the feet, which should make for an instant classic. It’s a difficult fight to pick, with Swanson holding the edge in experience and Holloway in youth, but regardless of who wins, it should be a fun fight. But if Holloway can pull off the upset, get ready featherweight division, because a new contender will be born.