Max Holloway looks back on the low point that nearly ended his UFC run

Max Holloway is approaching UFC 329 with a different kind of confidence than the one he had when he was champion, not because his talent has changed, but because he has lived through the moment where other people tried to write the ending for him. A week before what could be the biggest fight of his career, Holloway reflected on the backlash and retirement talk that followed his third UFC title loss to Alexander Volkanovski, describing it as a period when “a bunch of people” told him he was done in the sport.

Holloway’s title stretch in the UFC featherweight division included three defenses before the loss to Volkanovski at UFC 245, a fight that started a difficult chapter. In the rematch, Holloway again lost to Volkanovski in what was widely described as a controversial split decision at UFC 251. According to the interview reported by MMA Junkie, the defeat put him in a position where public opinion hardened quickly, with Holloway saying many people told him he needed to call it quits.

The fight game then turned into the workmanlike version of survival. Holloway did not stay trapped in the narrative that followed the trilogy’s first two losses. Instead, he built momentum back toward the title picture through successive performances that restored his standing in the division. MMA Junkie reported that Holloway earned his trilogy bout after back-to-back Fight of the Night efforts against Calvin Kattar and Yair Rodriguez, a streak that mattered because it did more than produce wins, it put him back in the conversation as the type of challenger who can create chaos for Volkanovski’s game plan.

Holloway has also pointed to what happened when he and Volkanovski fought again after those earlier fights. MMA Junkie’s account states that Volkanovski later put a stamp on the rivalry by shutting Holloway out at UFC 276, a result that Holloway characterized as part of the “off night” reality of elite competition. In the same reported reflection, Holloway emphasized the difference between one setback and a pattern, arguing that an isolated bad night cannot be treated as proof that an entire career has reached its ceiling.

The context heading into UFC 329 is unusually sharp because Holloway’s immediate future is tied to a returning opponent and a high-pressure main-event slot. MMA Junkie reported that Holloway’s rematch is with Conor McGregor in the UFC 329 main event on July 11 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, with the card airing on Paramount+. That setup makes Holloway’s look back at retirement talk more than motivation. It is also a reminder of how fast public evaluations can flip when a fighter’s results dip, and how hard it is to reverse that perception without a run of statement performances.

For the sport itself, Holloway’s story underscores a recurring cycle in MMA title pictures: champions are measured not just by what they accomplish, but by how they respond to being pushed off the top. It also highlights the endurance of a rivalry, since Holloway’s path back to Volkanovski was built through performances significant enough to earn his way into a trilogy, not through quiet positioning. What to watch at UFC 329 is whether Holloway can bring the same clarity he described from his lowest point into a fight where the narrative will be both personal and immediate. If he can, it would not only extend his momentum, it would further define what a true rebound looks like at the highest level.

Finally, Holloway’s comments carry an obvious caveat: sports talk and public doubt do not automatically dictate outcomes inside the cage. The only way to settle that debate is still performance. Holloway’s reported message, that people can talk but fighters have to keep understanding what they are capable of, is a familiar one in MMA, yet in this case it comes from the specific period when he says the world told him to stop.