Max Holloway isn’t holding back ahead of his UFC 329 main event rematch with Conor McGregor. Thirteen years after their first meeting, and with McGregor returning from a five-year layoff, Holloway made his intentions clear. He told Dan Tom:
“First thing I’m going to do is put paws on Conor McGregor. Then, I’m going to beat him so bad he’s going to have to rematch me at the end of the year.”
Max Holloway also has a message for Michael Chandler
That confidence carried over into a message for Michael Chandler, who has been left on the outside looking in after his own long-awaited clash with Conor McGregor fell through. Holloway said:
“Keep hoping, man.”
Chandler knows that frustration well. He served as a coach opposite McGregor on The Ultimate Fighter 31, building toward a matchup the two were supposed to settle in the cage at UFC 303 in 2024. That fight fell apart when McGregor withdrew due to a toe injury, leaving Chandler waiting on a rematch that never materialized. Since then, Chandler has struggled badly. ‘Iron’ has lost four bouts in a row and most recently got knocked out in the first round by Mauricio Ruffy at UFC White House.
Max Holloway also reflected on his own long road back to McGregor, admitting he thought a rematch might happen five or six years ago, long before it actually came together.
Now, with the fight finally here, he’s framing it not just as a statement fight but as the first step toward an even bigger rematch down the line, one he seems determined to make happen on his own terms, whether ‘The Notorious’ likes it or not.
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