UFC free fight: Alexander Volkanovski edges out Max Holloway to retain featherweight title

Alexander Volkanovski had to weather a bit of an early storm, but ultimately did enough to shut out Max Holloway once again.

After dethroning Holloway to win the featherweight title at UFC 245, the pair rematched in the co-main event of UFC 251 in July 2020.

In what was mainly a feeling out process to start Round 1, Volkanovski employed effective leg kicks just like he did in their first fight, while Holloway tried to walk him down. But Holloway was landing the more significant strikes, tagging Volkanovski with a big head kick to end the round.

The champion recovered well and continued to chop away with leg kicks, while making Holloway pay on the counter. But Holloway continued to be the aggressor and once again, with seconds winding down in the round, he briefly dropped Volkanovski with an uppercut and was up big heading into the third.

But Volkanovski came out with a sense of urgency in the championship rounds, ramping up his strike count and tying Holloway up in the clinch. He started to find a home for his jab and landed multiple brief takedowns to close out the fight strong. Two of the judges awarded Volkanovski the fight and the champion retained his title via split decision.

Volkanovski (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC) returns to action on Sept. 25 when he takes on Brian Ortega (15-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) in the main event of UFC 266, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Before he faces Ortega, relive Volkanovski’s win over Holloway in the video above.