The third meeting should bring a lot of pressure. Prior to his loss to Volkanovski, he was considered one of the best pound-for- pound fighters in the world. His legacy will be altered if he loses for a third time.
You always talk about who has more to lose. I think I have more to lose in that place. I always say I'm not going to win this fight. I think this could be my last fight. We have no idea what will happen after this. I don't know if I will fight again. You don't understand.
Fans are in for a treat when I approach it that way.
Max gave an analysis of what happened when he lost the title.
He is correct about that. Volkanovski is the fourth pound for pound fighter in the world. There is a person who is not in the top six. It is rare for two of the best fighters in the world to fight each other three times in three years.
Although he didn't complain about the scorecards of their first two fights, he did say that he should never leave a fight in the hands of the judges. In his four pro fights, Volkanovski has only been finished once.
It's easier said than done, in any fight at any level. It's difficult to do when you have guys like me and Alex, who are the top two in the weight class. You get out there and do it.
There have been 10 rounds with this guy. If we get past three, we will be lucky.
The stakes on Saturday are high from a business point of view but, according to Chris Daggett, that's nothing new for Holloway. The Hawaiian team is used to seeing Holloway's career in two different ways.
"Anything with Max, whether it's finances, his family, brand, partnerships, charity, his health, all of these are long-term things." Everything is short term when it comes to fighting. Three feet ahead is what we're looking at. It feels like everything is on the line. Everything is placed on the table. We know that no matter what, Max is the same person. From a short term point of view, everything is at stake, but we know that everything will be fine two weeks from now.
Two and a half years have passed since the fight at T-Mobile Arena. That's the same amount of time since he fought in front of fans, as his past three fights have taken place during the Pandemic Restrictions. With restrictions being lifted, he has over 60 family and friends flying from Hawaii into Las Vegas.
He says he's going into this trilogy with a champion's mindset.
When he first joined the UFC, he felt like a champ. When I was in the UFC, I fought Will Chope for my pink slip. Why are you here if you don't believe you are the best in the world? That helps me get to my destination.
It might be similar to any other fight, even if history remembers it more.
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