Knockdown Daily 1/8/22: Max Holloway Out of UFC 272 Title Fight
Max Holloway's departure from UFC 272 leads the MMA headlines for Saturday
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Welcome to the Saturday edition of the Knockdown Daily. Today’s issue is a busy one that covers a lot of recent movement in the upcoming schedule for MMA fights.
News
Injury Forces Max Holloway Out of Title Fight Against Alexander Volkanovski
Max Holloway’s trilogy fight against UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski will have to wait, as he has been pulled from their March 5th bout at UFC 272.
News of his withdrawal from the fight was first reported Friday by Brett Okamoto of ESPN.
Holloway’s reported reason for withdrawal from the fight is the “aggravation” of an injury he had previously suffered. It’s not known currently what that injury exactly is or how long it could sideline him.
The fight was set to give Holloway a chance to score his first win over Volkanovski. He first met Volkanovski in 2019, losing via unanimous decision to drop his featherweight bout. A year later, Holloway lost in the rematch with a close split decision result.
Holloway had worked his way towards another title fight by defeating Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez in main event bouts last year.
News of the fight between Holloway and Volkanovski just broke earlier this week, along with a bantamweight title fight between Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan. That bout is now the sole title fight expected for UFC 272.
UFC Attempting To Make Derrick Lewis vs. Tai Tuivasa For February 12th PPV
Ranked heavyweights might clash next month, as UFC is currently in the process of making a fight between Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa for UFC 271, which is scheduled to happen on February 12th. News of the potential fight was first reported by Farah Hannoun and Mike Bohn of MMA Junkie.
Lewis stopped the upward momentum of heavyweight prospect Chris Daukaus just last month, finishing him within a round with strikes in the main event of a “Fight Night” card.
That put Lewis back into the win column after losing an interim title fight against Ciryl Gane in August.
Before the title loss last year, Lewis was on a strong run of four consecutive wins at heavyweight, making him one of the top names in the division.
A similar run can be seen on Tuivasa’s record currently.
Tuivasa has strung together four consecutive finish wins since 2020. All of them have come relatively early into fights, never going deeper than the opening minute of the second round.
Tuivasa’s most recent victory was his biggest thus far, stopping Augusto Sakai at UFC 269 in December.
Tuivasa recently expressed interest in a bout against Lewis on Ariel Helwani’s “MMA Hour” program, claiming they are “the fun of this [heavyweight] division.”
The fight sets Tuivasa up for a potentially large leap up the heavyweight rankings. He currently sits 11th in the division, eight places behind Lewis.
UFC Looking To Make Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rafael Fiziev For February 19th Main Event
Rafael Fiziev could get his first main event appearance next month, as the UFC is looking to book him against Rafael dos Anjos for their February 19th headliner. News of the potential bout was first reported by Mike Heck of MMA Fighting on Friday.
The fight reportedly hasn’t been signed off on yet but is being made by the promotion at the moment.
Fiziev is being set up for a main event booking after putting together a strong winning streak in the UFC. After losing his promotional debut in 2019, Fiziev has since earned five consecutive wins and climbed up to the 11th spot in the divisional rankings.
Fiziev scored a stoppage victory in his last appearance, defeating Brad Riddell in December with a wheel kick knockout.
A booking in February for dos Anjos would be his first appearance in over a year. He last fought in November 2020, where he beat short-notice opponent Paul Felder via split decision in a five-round contest. That victory put him back in the win column following two straight losses before.
Dos Anjos was booked to face Islam Makhachev in October 2021, but an injury later forced him out of that booking. He would later get replaced by Dan Hooker.
Muslim Salikhov Out of January 15th UFC Bout Against Michel Pereira
UFC’s January 15th card has lost a bout, as Muslim Salikhov has withdrawn from his welterweight fight against Michel Pereira. His departure from the lineup was confirmed Friday by Guilherme Cruz and Alexander K. Lee of MMA Fighting.
The bout was set to happen at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
It is unknown currently why Salikhov withdrew from his fight. With just over a week until the event, UFC is reportedly in the process of trying to find a new opponent for Pereira.
Salikhov was attempting to return to action and extend his winning streak to six consecutive. His last fight was in June when he beat Francisco Trinaldo via unanimous decision.
Pereira is also on a streak, having won his last three appearances in the UFC cage.
Pereira is known for his flashy style but has actually gone the distance in a couple of his more recent fights. His last appearance came in July, picking up a scorecard victory against Niko Price.
Bobby Green vs. Nasrat Haqparast Booked For UFC 271
UFC veteran Bobby Green will step back into the cage on February 12th, facing Nasrat Haqparast at a pay-per-view event from the promotion. News of the matchup was first reported by Walter Salcido on Thursday.
Green earned a finish win in his last outing, stopping Al Iaquinta within a round due to strikes in November. The win was his first finish victory since 2013. He had lost his two prior cage appearances, including a striking battle against Rafael Fiziev earlier in the year.
In his last fight, Haqparast was on the losing side of a dominant decision outcome against Dan Hooker. Haqparast had been successful in his two prior appearances, defeating prospects Rafa Garcia and Alex Munoz – handing them both their first pro losses.
Haqparast was previously scheduled to face John Makdessi later in the month of February, although that fight was canceled after Makdessi suffered an injury.
Junior dos Santos To Headline Second Triller ‘Triad Combat’ Event Against Kubrat Pulev
Triller Fight Club will host their second “Triad Combat” event in February, bringing together another selection of MMA fighters and boxers into their unique combat ruleset.
The event is expected to take place on February 26th at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, USA, per an announcement made Thursday. The news was first reported by Matthew Wells of MMA Junkie.
Triller held their first “Triad Combat” event in December. The event saw MMA fighters face boxers under a ruleset that attempts to find a middle ground between the two combat sports.
Fighting inside a triangular ring with ropes, fighters were allowed to throw punches, spinning backfists, and strikes in the clinch. They also wore gloves that resembled the MMA glove look, as opposed to what boxers would wear in a match.
The fights were in two-minute rounds, with the number of rounds varying from a minimum of five to a maximum of nine.
The main event of the card will see former UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior dos Santos meet Kubrat Pulev.
The matchup is expected to be dos Santos’ first appearance in combat sports since his 23-fight run with the UFC. His campaign with the promotion concluded after he went on a four-fight losing streak that all came via finish.
Pulev appeared in the main event of the first “Triad Combat” event last year, defeating Frank Mir in the first round.
Another former UFC Champion will appear lower on the card, as Vitor Belfort will face boxer Chad Dawson.
Belfort was an active competitor in MMA from 1997 to 2018, fighting in promotions like UFC and Pride FC. He returned to combat sports in September, defeating short-notice opponent Evander Holyfield in a boxing match – one that was criticized by many for being an unsafe mismatch.
Lower on the card, appearances from names like UFC alum Jimmie Rivera, Bellator vets Joe Schilling and Sam Sicilia, and former PFL fighter Claudia Zamora are expected as well.
JJ Aldrich vs. Ariane Lipski To Happen At March 12th UFC ‘Fight Night’
Flyweights JJ Aldrich and Ariane Lipski are expected to meet at UFC’s March 12th card, per a report from Guilherme Cruz of MMA Fighting.
Aldrich enters the new year with the momentum of a successful 2021. She scored two wins last year, defeating Cortney Casey via split decision and picking up a unanimous decision result over Vanessa Demopoulos.
Lipski scored a potentially necessary win last time around, snapping a streak of two finish losses that she had. The win that broke this skid came in September, when she defeated UFC newcomer Mandy Bohm, giving the prospect her first pro loss.
UFC Looking To Book Tim Means vs. Jeremiah Wells For February 5th Card
UFC is currently in the process of putting together a welterweight bout between Tim Means and Jeremiah Wells for their February 5th card, per a report from Nolan King and Farah Hannoun of MMA Junkie.
Means has been on a roll as of late, having strung together three consecutive wins since 2020. The most recent win of that streak came in June of last year, as he worked to a decision victory over Nicolas Dalby.
Wells is coming off a successful UFC debut last year. He joined a June 2021 card on short notice, replacing Ramazan Emeev in a fight against Warlley Alves. The former CFFC Welterweight Champion made a statement in this appearance, stopping Alves early in the second round.
Wells was set to make his second UFC walk in December against Jake Matthews, except COVID-19 protocols prevented that fight from going forward.
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