Max Holloway will return for his second fight of the year at UFC 308, facing featherweight champion Ilia Topuria. Earlier this year, the Hawaiian star made headlines for his iconic BMF bout with top lightweight Justin Gaethje. While Holloway doesn’t want to overshadow others mimicking his finishing move, he believes there’s something the fighters must follow.
At UFC 300, before the final bell, Max Holloway pointed to the center of the octagon and challenged Justin Gaethje to stand and trade. As expected, Gaethje accepted, leading to a wild exchange that saw him eventually getting dropped. Since then, Holloway’s iconic move has gone viral, with fighters worldwide mimicking it. In a recent interview, the Hawaiian fighter shared the true essence behind that gesture.
Just remember when you guys do the point down, it’s ‘stay there and swing’ NOT ‘point down and take a couple steps back
Max Holloway via ESPN MMA
Going into the last round at UFC 300, Holloway was comfortably winning the bout on points, and there was no need to take the risk. However, the fighter thought of giving Gaethje a last chance to get a knockout win. Holloway believed that the ‘Highlight’ would have done the same if the roles were reversed.
Max Holloway’s message to fighters attempting his signature ‘point-down’ move:
“Just remember when you guys do the point down, it’s ‘stay there and swing’ NOT ‘point down and take a couple steps back’.” 😅
(via. @espnmma) #UFC #MMA #UFC308 pic.twitter.com/e1x16NAifH
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 20, 2024
According to Max Holloway, the point down began at UFC 199 where he fought Ricardo Lamas and won the fight via unanimous decision. Holloway asked Lamas to stand and trade in the last few seconds, which has since been an entertaining move from the ‘Blessed.’ However, it seems Holloway’s upcoming rival, Ilia Topuria, doesn’t understand the concept behind the move.
Max Holloway calls out ‘dumb’ Ilia Topuria over point-down move
Max Holloway, after the glorious win at UFC 300, called out Ilia Topuria for a title shot, who was present inside the arena. When asked about the finishing sequence, the Georgian-Spaniard revealed that he didn’t see any technique. He compared the exchange with a glorified bar fight.
Going into UFC 308, Topuria is highly confident about his striking. He has even challenged Holloway to try the point-down move in the first 10 seconds. However, the Hawaiian star recently gave a rather hilarious response ridiculing Topuria’s IQ.
I don’t think [Ilia] gets the gist of it. The point down is something you do towards the end of a fight. The belt is called the ‘Baddest Mother F***er’. If the belt was the DMF, ‘Dumbest Mother F***er’, then maybe I would’ve got sucked into it…He talks about being a boxer, that’s not very much boxer IQ-ish of him.
Max Holloway via MMA Fighting
Max Holloway responds to Ilia Topuria’s offer to stand-and-bang in the first 10 seconds of the fight:
“I don’t think [Ilia] gets the gist of it. The point down is something you do towards the end of a fight.
If something’s going good, if the fight is entertaining or if you’re… pic.twitter.com/S5MzXdvjc6
— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) October 20, 2024
Since the announcement of the fight, both Topuria and Holloway have indulged in a variety of trash-talking. Fans are excited about the upcoming press conference as well as the fight. While the Hawaiian star will look forward to recreating his iconic move, Topuria is eager to be the first fighter to drop Holloway.
