Max Holloway was just hours out from competing against one of the greatest fighters ever before he was abruptly pulled by the commission because of an unsafe weight cut.
This Saturday, Max Holloway attempts to become the first fighter in UFC history to successfully defend the BMF title when he takes on Dustin Poirier in the blockbuster main event at UFC 318.
Ahead of the event in Louisiana, emotional tributes have poured in for ‘The Diamond’ as it is set to be his final walk to the Octagon after an incredible career.
Throughout their careers, Holloway and Poirier have fought against the same opponents, however, one fighter that eluded ‘Blessed’ was Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Holloway was pulled from fight just hours before event due to unsafe weight cut
In 2018, the lightweight division went through one of its most confusing eras. Tony Ferguson and ‘The Eagle’ were once again booked to fight each other for the undisputed 155lb title after Conor McGregor was stripped.
Just a week before the event, ‘El Cucuy’ withdrew from the fight after tripping on some electrical wiring and injuring his knee.
The promotion announced that Holloway, who at the time was the featherweight champion, would step up on short notice to take on Khabib for the lightweight title.
Despite that, just hours before the event during the official weigh-ins, the event took another shocking turn when Holloway was deemed medically unfit to continue cutting weight and was subsequently pulled from the fight.
Several lightweight contenders threw their name in the hat and the promotion controversially promoted Al Iaquinta to take on Nurmagomedov as he was already scheduled to compete on the event.
Max Holloway apologized to Khabib after attempting to continue weight cut
After the commission stopped ‘Blessed’ from continuing to cut weight, he took to social media to apologize to Nurmagomedov and his team, claiming he attempted to continue cutting.
“Khabib Nurmagomedov, my brother I was to keep going but they are stopping me. Sorry to your team and the fans. You don’t deserve this. This is number one. Shout outs to you and Anthony Pettis. Give the fans what they deserve,” Holloway said.
Fortunately this time around though, Holloway had far more time to adjust to the 155lb limit.
And on the other side is Poirier, who ahead of what is his final fight in the sport has claimed that it was his ‘easiest’ weight cut ever as fans credit him for his shape going into the fight.