UFC featherweight contender Calvin Kattar has given his take on champion Alexander Volkanovski accusing Max Holloway of faking an injury to avoid their trilogy fight.
Last month it was announced that Holloway, coming off a pair of memorable victories over Kattar and Yair Rodriguez in 2021, would be the next challenger to Volkanovski’s 145-pound reign. Since the Australian dethroned “Blessed” in December 2020 and subsequently defended the belt against him six months later, he’s retained the belt with a five-round win against Brian Ortega.
But just days after the trilogy was announced, it was off. Holloway withdrew after aggravating a previous injury. In his place, “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung stepped up, and Volkanovski’s first appearance of 2022 got pushed back a month to UFC 273.
But in a surprising turn of events, ESPN recently reported that Holloway was back in training and eager to serve as a backup option for the April pay-per-view main event.
After hearing the news, the champion took to Twitter to accuse his rival of faking an injury in order to avoid another loss to him. Prior to the booking and recent revelations, “The Great” had already suggested Holloway may look to avoid a third clash with him because another defeat would be damaging to the former titleholder’s legacy.
Kattar: Holloway Doesn’t Dodge Anybody
While others have also questioned the quick development from withdrawal to full training, #5-ranked featherweight contender Kattar believes it is “crazy” to suggest Holloway would dodge an opponent.
During a media scrum at UFC 271 this past weekend, “The Boston Finisher” was asked for his take on the matter. Having felt Holloway’s toughness first hand last January, Kattar doesn’t believe Holloway would fake an injury or avoid a fight, especially considering his willingness to face the returning Rodriguez last November.
“I’m not reading too much into it. I mean, as a fight fan, that would’ve been a good matchup, watching him and the champ go back at it, third time running it, especially after the last two,” Kattar said. “As far as what got him ready (to be backup) and whatnot, I’m not reading too far into that.
“I feel like to question Max, man, it’s kind of crazy. He took the Yair fight when he didn’t really need to,” Kattar continued. “He was next in line for the champ anyway, but he took it. The champ and Max, I think, are two guys that don’t really dodge anybody and wanna fight the best guys in the world, so I got a lot of respect for them.”
With Holloway’s recovery and availability for April, it stands to reason “Blessed” will get another chance to reclaim the 145-pound gold later this year. But for now, it’s the turn of UFC veteran “The Korean Zombie.”
Do you agree with Calvin Kattar’s take on Max Holloway’s withdrawal and recovery?
