Max Holloway knows who’s next. Now he just has to find him.
The Waianae native, who Saturday night in Toronto became the interim UFC featherweight champion after a third-round TKO of Anthony Pettis, will get his long-awaited shot at Jose Aldo to unify the 145-pound titles some time next year.
Unless Aldo won’t do the fight.
The 30-year-old Brazilian, who is 16-1 at featherweight in the WEC and UFC, has dominated the division for the past eight years, losing only to Conor McGregor last December.
Aldo has been relentless in his efforts to get a rematch against McGregor, now the UFC lightweight champion, and even hinted at retirement if McGregor wasn’t his next opponent.
That has left Holloway, who has wanted to fight Aldo since he first made his UFC debut four years ago, skeptical it will ever happen even after saying he was offered the fight.
“This is my golden ticket,” Holloway said at Saturday’s post-fight press conference, pointing to his UFC belt. “(Aldo) has a (reputation) for not showing up for the fight. For all I know, that (expletive) is always getting hurt and getting pulled out (from fights). This might as well be the true belt.”
Before Holloway had the belt strapped around his waist following the stoppage of Pettis, he said UFC President Dana White offered him the fight with Aldo at UFC 208 in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Feb. 11.
After calling out Aldo to do that fight in the cage, Holloway hinted at the press conference that it might be too soon for his liking.
“I said it in (the Ocatagon) in February,” Holloway said. “When everything was slowing down and I was in the back, I already had to give up Thanksgiving for this fight. I had to give up my birthday. I don’t want to give up my son’s birthday and Christmas for February 11 and he don’t show up. This guy has an act for not showing up to the fight. It’s hard to find the guy.”
Holloway, who turned 25 last Sunday, picked up his 13th win in the UFC, becoming the first man to stop Pettis (16-9, 6-5 UFC), a former UFC and WEC lightweight champion.
His 10-fight win streak ties Royce Gracie for the fifth-longest in UFC history and he’s the only UFC 145-pounder to win seven fights by stoppage. Holloway hasn’t lost since a decision to McGregor in August 2013 and his 12 victories at 145 pounds are the most in the UFC.
He’s done all of this despite just now entering the prime of his career.
Holloway’s maturity showed against Pettis, who broke his right hand early in the fight.
The first round was close as Holloway took his time before eventually taking Pettis apart. It started with a knockdown in the second round and slowly Pettis began to swell up and eventually bleed from near his right eye.
Holloway stepped up the pressure in the third round and scored two takedowns and two big kicks that led to the finish.
A beaten Pettis took a series of shots up against the fence before turtling up, allowing referee Yves Lavigne to step in and stop the fight with 10 seconds left in the round.
“I don’t finish guys early. I like to take people into deep waters,” said Holloway, who has finished four fighters in the third round. “I like to let them think they can compete with me. Once I saw him miss weight it was like, ‘it’s going to be a long night my friend.’ ”
Holloway, who joined B.J. Penn as the only Hawaii fighters to both win a UFC world title and main event a pay-per-view, had a lucrative night. Not only did he receive his own fight purse, he also got 20 percent of Pettis’ purse after Pettis failed to make the 145-pound weight limit. Holloway also received an extra $50,000 for a performance of the night bonus.
“This belt ain’t going to change me,” Holloway said. “It’s only going to change my bank account and that’s a beautiful thing.”
Aldo remains Holloway’s top priority, but he reaffirmed his belief over and over he won’t wait for that fight. The dream of headlining a UFC event in Hawaii remains strong, especially if it comes against McGregor.
“If he’s going to have that fight with me and Conor in my hometown, they better get the load of security guards because there’s going to be a bunch of UFC fights in the damn arena,” Holloway said. “Hawaiians don’t talk. They just punch you. We wild people.
“We’ll see what happens. I’m the best man alive. I don’t believe in guys waiting for title shots. I believe I’m the best damn guy in the world. If I have to defend this (belt) 10 times before I get the undisputed (belt) then that’s what I will do.”
