Calvin Kattar went on a solid run to get himself into a position to headline a card on network television, but there are levels to this. And Max Holloway is not only one of the best to ever do fight, he’s still in his prime.
Kattar (22-5 MMA, 6-3 UFC) found this out the hard way Saturday at UFC on ABC 1, as Holloway (22-6 MMA, 18-6 UFC), the former UFC featherweight champion, was in vintage form. The Hawaiian standout quite simply pieced up a super tough opponent for 25 minutes en route to a unanimous decision win with scores of 50-43, 50-43, and 50-42.
Holloway, for his part, offered to step in and fight if either Conor McGregor or Dustin Poirier have to drop out of their UFC 257 main event next weekend.
“All I gotta say is (there’s) a big, big fight next week, Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor. And guess what? Your boy is staying all into the week,” Holloway said. “If anything happens, somebody drops off, Dana knows my number. He can hit me up.”
Holloway is absolutely pouring it on!!! 🤯 #UFCFightIsland7 pic.twitter.com/CLdXbTVL2f
— UFC (@ufc) January 16, 2021
Holloway announced his intention from the start of the fight, as he spent the opening round initiating action. He landed combos of three and four punches at a time and kept Kattar guessing, as he varied these flurries from the head to the body and back.
By the second, the damage started to add up on Kattar, as Holloway started adding power to his precision and kept his foe on the run. It was a display of guts on Kattar’s part simply to get to the horn, as he covered up and withstood the onslaught.
Kattar has the type of power one must respect, and he landed a couple times in the third, particularly a big overhand right. That was enough to get Holloway’s attention, and Holloway still dominated the round and finished by artfully dodging a Kattar combo, causing him to swing at air.
The fourth was most noteworthy for the amount of damage Kattar was able to sustain and stay on his feet. Over and over, Holloway landed, unleashing the sort of flurries that have finished many opponents. Somehow, a wobbly Kattar stayed on his feet, and occasionally threw counter punches and elbows, which weren’t far off. He also withstood three kicks in the round’s closing seconds.
While one had to wonder whether Kattar’s corner, or referee Herb Dean, were going to wave off the bout, Kattar yet again hung in there and even landed a couple of his biggest punches of the fight. But Holloway was never seriously threatened, as he closed the deal on a sensational performance.
I'M THE BEST BOXER IN THE UFC!!!! #UFCFightIsland7 pic.twitter.com/Nfc4Csp6f4
— UFC (@ufc) January 16, 2021
Kattar offered nothing but respect to his opponent afterwards.
“You gotta kill me to get me out of there. I ain’t gonna take a knee for anybody. Max Holloway is an animal. If you ain’t a Max Holloway fan, you’re a hater,” Kattar said. “Kid’s a beast, did what he had to do, and good luck to him. Hopefully he’s the champ next, because he deserves another shot.”
The featherweight bout was the UFC on ABC 1 main event at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. It aired on ABC and streamed on ESPN+ following prelims on ESPN+.
Complete UFC on ABC 1 results:
- Max Holloway def. Calvin Kattar via unanimous decision (50-43, 50-43, 50-42)
- Carlos Condit def. Matt Brown via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Li Jingliang def. Santiago Ponzinibbio via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 4:25
- Alessio Di Chirico def. Joaquin Buckley via knockout (head kick, punches) – Round 1, 2:12
- Punahele Soriano def. Dusko Todorovic via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:48
- Joselyne Edwards def. Wu Yanan via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Carlos Felipe def. Justin Tafa via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
- Ramazan Emeev def. David Zawada via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Vanessa Melo def. Sarah Moras via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Austin Lingo def. Jacob Kilburn via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
