The Octagon returns to Toronto on Saturday night with Max’Blessed’ Holloway defending his featherweight belt against undefeated Brian’T-City Ortega in the UFC 231 headliner in Scotiabank Arena.
As of early Friday night, most novels had Ortega (14-0-1 MMA, 6-0-1 UFC) listed as a -125 favored with a total of 3.5 rounds (‘under’ -125,’over’ -105). Holloway had been the brief’chalk’ for many months before Thursday when the 27-year-old Ortega took on the favourite role.
Holloway (19-3 MMA, 15-3 UFC) has won 12 consecutive fights since losing a unanimous decision against Conor’The Notorious’ McGregor in UFC Boston on August 17 of 2013. In this unbelievable run, the 27-year-old Hawaiian has finished nine of 12 foes and collected five fight-night bonuses.
Holloway entered the name picture in 2015 by submitting Cub Swanson, beating Charles Oliveira and making decision successes over Cole Miller and Jeremy Stephens. Then in 2016 Holloway knocked off Ricardo Lamas by choice, enticing’The Bully’ into a swing-for-the-fences contest in the last 10 seconds of this garbage (it was savage!) .
The victory over Lamas garnered Holloway a shot at the interim 145-pound strap contrary to former lightweight champion Anthony’Showtime’ Pettis. Holloway won the belt by simply taking out Pettis with a third-round knockout at UFC 206 in Toronto.
Next,’Blessed’ took on the legendary Jose Aldo Jr. to combine the featherweight belts. Holloway went to Aldo’s hometown of Rio and defeat him by way of third-round KO in UFC 212. Then from the rematch at Detroit in UFC 218, Holloway once again won with a third-round KO of Aldo on Dec. 2 of 2017.
Advertisement Coming into 2018, Holloway had the appearance of one the advertising’s most dominant champions. But he had to withdraw from his scheduled March 3 title defense against former lightweight champ Frankie Edgar because of an injury. When Tony Ferguson was hurt doing press a week before facing Khabib Nurmagomedov for Ferguson’s interim lightweight belt, Holloway accepted an offer to confront Nurmagomedov on just six days of note.
The battle April 7 did not happen, though, because the New York Athletic Commission forced Holloway to stop cutting weight — out of health/safety concerns — on Friday morning. He had been also scheduled to defend his featherweight title against Ortega at UFC 226 on July 7, but he had been pulled from the fight due to”concussion-like symptoms”
Holloway was put on the shelf while physicians ran various tests. The health care people never really figured out what the issue was to get the featherweight kingpin, but they cleared him to return to fighting. There was a good deal of chatter concerning how Holloway’s weight reduction goes, but he stepped on the scale this morning and then hit his mark with a half-pound to spare at 144.5 pounds.
Ortega also had an effortless weight cut and was among the fighters to make his number. He is less than 24 hours away from his shot at fulfilling a lifelong fantasy.

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