Max Holloway’s latest featherweight title defense will come against Brian Ortega at UFC 226 on July 7th in Las Vegas, Dana White has announced.
Holloway had expressed his interest in the fight recently after a short-notice attempt to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov for the lightweight title at UFC 223 in Brooklyn fell through at the last minute after doctor’s pulled the plug on his weight cut due to health concerns.
‘Blessed’ is currently riding a 12-fight winning streak that led to him first winning the interim 145lb belt after TKO’ing Anthony Pettis in 2016, before unifying the title with back-to-back TKO victories against Jose Aldo in 2017.
Meanwhile, the undefeated Ortega has been busy establishing himself as the rightful No.1 contender in the division with an impressives six-fight winning streak in the UFC’s Octagon.
Some of his most notable victories along the way have included KO’ing Clay Guida, submitting Cub Swanson and then in his last fight claiming his biggest win to date by becoming the first man to ever knockout Frankie Edgar.
Holloway Vs Ortega is set to be a fascinating co-main event match-up for UFC 226, which will be headlined by a heavyweight superfight between current champion Stipe Miocic and light-heavyweight titleholder Daniel Cormier.