UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway seeks to avenge his 2012 loss to Dustin Poirier as the two square off at UFC 236 scheduled April 13 at the State Farms Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. This was revealed by UFC President Dana White in an interview with ESPN.
Seeking for revenge
Holloway jumps up to the 155-pound division as he guns for the interim lightweight title due to the nine-month suspension of UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. White revealed that the fight was initially offered to Tony Ferguson, but the latter turned it down paving the way for the rematch to become a reality.
Despite the move to lightweight, Holloway will still keep his 145-pound belt. He has a 13-fight win streak and was adjudged as the number 4 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. He is coming off a decision win over Brian Ortega in December 2018. Poirier, on the other hand, has won eight of his last nine matches, six of them were won by finishes. His win streak included victories over Anthony Pettis, Justin Gaethje, and Eddie Alvarez.
In 2012, Poirier won over Holloway via submission. That match was Max’s debut fight in the Octagon. Poirier considers Holloway as a tough test for him as much as he is to Holloway. Poirier was supposed to fight Nate Diaz in November but the latter pulled out while Poirier was recovering from a hip injury.
Gearing up for a title fight
Meanwhile, serving as the co-main event for UFC 236 is the match between Kelvin Gastelum and Israel Adesanya for the interim middleweight championship. A report from CBS Sports revealed that this was another replacement card while middleweight champion Robert Whitaker is also recovering from an injury that sidelined him from UFC 234.
Gastelum is coming off a victory over Ronaldo Souza in UFC 224. Adesanya, on the other hand, is fresh from a unanimous decision win over Anderson Silva last February 2019 at UFC 234 earning him a Fight of Night award.
The following matches have been announced as undercards for the Holloway vs Poirier and Gastelum vs Adesanya main events
- 205 lbs.: Eryk Anders vs. Khalik Rountree
- 125 lbs.: Alexandre Pantoja vs. Wilson Reis
- 135 lbs.: Montel Jackson vs. Andre Soukhamthath
- 205 lbs.: Nikita Krylov vs. Ovince Saint Preux
- 135 lbs.: Boston Salmon vs. Khalid Taha
- 125 lbs.: Poliana Botelho vs. Paige VanZant
The crowded lightweight division is also slated to have a summer confrontation between former lightweight champion Conor McGregor and veteran fighter Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone.
