Alright, so I got really into this idea of comparing Conor McGregor and Max Holloway, like, breaking down their fights and styles. It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while, and I finally decided to just dive in and do it.
Getting Started
First, I started collecting stuff. I mean, you can’t really do a comparison without, you know, actually watching the fights. So I dug up their first fight, the one back in 2013. I remembered it being pretty one-sided, but I wanted to see it with fresh eyes.
- Watched McGregor vs. Holloway 1 (UFC Fight Night 26)
The First Fight – Rewatch and Notes
I fired up the fight and grabbed a notepad. I wanted to jot down what I saw, like, round by round. Conor’s striking was sharp, obviously, but I was surprised by how much Max was trying to grapple. I guess that makes sense now, given how good his jiu-jitsu is, but back then, it felt like he was just getting outclassed on the feet.
Conor’s takedown defense, the sprawling. Max did get one good takedown, after that Conor totally stuffed him a bunch of times. I noticed, even in the early rounds, Conor was targeting Max’s lead leg with some kicks. The way Conor controlled the center of the Octagon. He was always pushing forward, making Max react. After watched the fight, I just replay in my head, and jotted some key moments.
What I Realized
After going through all this, I kinda see how both guys have evolved. Max’s striking is way, way better now, and Conor… well, he’s still Conor, but he’s maybe relied more on that left hand. It really made me think about how much fighters can change over the years, and how you can’t really judge them based on just one fight, especially one that happened so long ago.
I’m thinking of doing a follow-up, maybe looking at how their styles have changed in other fights. This was a cool deep-dive, though. It’s fun to go back and really analyze this stuff, instead of just watching for the knockouts, you know?
