Max Holloway is officially out of his bout vs. Alexander Volkanovski in March after aggravating a previous injury. The two featherweights were slated to headline UFC 272 in Las Vegas, however Holloway informed UFC reps that he would have to withdraw late last night.
The UFC has yet to make an official announcement regarding the bout, and sources have yet to indicate whether the fight will be pushed back to a later date or a new challenger will slide in. Both fighters are undefeated in the octagon since their last fight in July of 2020 which saw Volkanovski win via split decision over “Blessed” Holloway.
The news comes only days after the two fighters inked the contract to set up their trilogy fight. Holloway is currently the #1 ranked contender in the 145lb division. Volkanovski just finished beating #2 ranked contender Brian Ortega in September, and #3 ranked contender Yair Rodriguez is fresh off a loss in November to Holloway. Meaning there isn’t an obvious choice to take Holloway’s spot to contend for the title.
As of now, the UFC 272 card looks like this:
- Aljamain Sterling vs. Petr Yan – Bantamweight Title Bout
- Edson Barboza vs. Bryce Mitchell
- Jessica Eye vs. Manon Fiorot
- Mariya Agapova vs. Maryna Moroz
- Dustin Jacoby vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk
- Tim Elliott vs. Tagir Ulanbekov
- Marina Rodriguez vs. Yan Xiaonan
The extent of Holloway’s injury is currently unknown.