Conor McGregor doesn’t have time to be thinking about who he may be facing the next time he’s at 145lbs right now.
The Dubliner is currently in the midst of his preparation for his lightweight clash with Rafael dos Anjos next month.
But a ghost from his past just won’t go away it seems.
Max Holloway of course lost to the the Irishman the same night McGregor snapped the cruciate ligament in his knee way back in 2013 at UFC Boston.
Since them both fighters have had diverging career paths, but now that McGregor is the featherweight champion, Holloway wants another crack at him.
The only problem, is, well, he may have to get in line.
The Hawaiian is currently recovering from a broken thumb picked up in his win over Jeremy Stephens at UFC 194 in December, but when he returns, he feels that he should at least be considered to challenge the Irishman the next time he defends his UFC Featherweight title according to MMA Junkie .
“It’s very confusing because a lot of people are saying Frankie deserves a shot, a lot of people are saying Jose Aldo deserves a shot, and then a lot of people are saying I deserve a shot. At the end of the day, it comes down to what the UFC wants and what fight makes sense for the UFC. I’ll tell Dana and tell matchmaker Sean (Shelby) to put our name back in, and we’ll see what names pop up.”
It would be an extraordinary decision to see Holloway take on the Dubliner next before Jose Aldo or Frankie Edgar, and ‘Blessed’ admits that both men are likely to find it much easier to set up a contest inside the octagon due to their high profile.
Everyone assumes McGregor and Frankie Edgar will be the next title showdown, but Holloway feels that with McGregor now at lightweight, the UFC need to create an interim belt in the meantime to set up who should be the next challenger for the Irishman.
“It’s all kind of messed up right now. There are a lot of things that could happen. With Conor going up, it kind of puts both the divisions on hold. There are Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar. I could see them doing a big fight with me and Frankie, or a big fight with me and Aldo. Why not do a interim belt if Conor gets hurt in his fight? We’ll see what happens. I have no idea where the division is right now.”
Holloway is unbeaten since his loss in Boston three years ago, and is hopeful that a big shot at some of top names in the featherweight division would prove his doubters wrong about his title ambitions.
“The only thing that matters is if you got a gold belt around your waist, and I don’t got one. I’ll fight whoever. I love proving people wrong. People said I’ve fought nobodies, but I disagree with them. But if they want to see me fight Chad or Frankie or Jose or Conor, I’ll fight any four of them any day of the week. Give me a call and let me get ready.”
