How does Holloway even beat Gaethje?

[Kono dio da!]

Holloway is my favourite fighter. I'm excited for this fight. Rather this than Emmett or another run at 45. This is weird and cool. But...Gaethje is a deadly matchup.
Gaethje's leg kicks will be a problem
The power will be a problem
The volume will be a problem
His counters will be a problem
His clinch strikes problematic
No range is safe with this guy.
His striking cardio holds up
What can max do to win? Apart from some weird counter punch TKO scenario, like
Max doesn't have knockout power like that.
He has good kicks but hasn't used them to great effect.
Sure that elbow he got kattar was nice but idk
The flurries and combos can be disrupted by Gaethje power shots.
Ironically the only area where max has a clear cut advantage is on the floor. Gaethje would not survive his top game if max stunned and knocked him down. Otherwise, this fight could turn ugly. Change my mind.

 

[Speakerbox]

If max puts on a heavy pace and doesn't get KO'd in the first two rounds, he has a chance.

 

[Blanqa Blanqua]

lure him into staying deep into a heated extended exchange in the pocket - then drop him and finish with hammer fist if not already cleanly KO'd

 

[Jinx_AA]

Gaethe gets rocked all the time …. I can see Holloway winning the fight with cleaner punches and better durability

Gaethes gunna need those leg kicks - I don’t think he can box with him personally

 

[Arm Barbarian]

His kick checking will definitely have to be on point.

Gaethje murders legs.

If he can check a lot of the kicks, Max can potentially outbox Justin. Outscore him with combo punching.

 

[Stick upkid]

Porier had a lot of striking success in their first fight against JG. Had a lot of nice 5-6 shot punch combinations. Max could theoretically have some similar success especially if he drags him into deep water with a high pace, but I fear he doesn’t have the power to punish Gaethje. Seems to me like it’s gonna be a bad night for max, but hey I’ve been wrong plenty of times

 

[fortheo]

Holloway showed pretty significant improvements in leg kick defense throughout the Volk trilogy, and looked more defensively responsible than ever in general against Arnold allen. It is possible he can beat gaethje the same way some others have beaten gaethje -- pressure, volume and body shots untill gaethje slows and becomes sloppy. Max is one of the best pressure fighters and he is constantly attacking the body and throwing insane volume, so he has a very clear path to victory in my opinion. He'll have to take some punishment to break gaethje down, obviously, but if he gets gaethje brawling early, and max survives the first 8 minutes or so, I think he can pick a sloppy, tired gaethje apart in the last three rounds.

 

[oski]

Love Max, but Gaethje is on a different level.

 

[StoneWT]

This will be the start of Max' Chocolate Al/BJ Penn downhill slide. Look for him to get brutalized and never win against a good opponent again.

 

[Dobymick]

He will have to avoid a brawl somehow and relying on volume and point fighting to coast it to a decision win. Which I don't see it happening, Gaethje will go after him and basically force a brawl destroying his legs in the meantime and finish him within two rounds

 

[Dandy Chiggins]

By seducing Justin's gf and having a full on affair with her in the week leading up to the fight. Then dumping her on the eve of the fight while spreading a false rumor that she's carrying Max's child. Justin will read this in the social media and immediately lose his mind. It will be like Aldo versus Conor where he's the Aldo.

 

[StonedLemur]

Holloway is my favourite fighter. I'm excited for this fight. Rather this than Emmett or another run at 45. This is weird and cool. But...Gaethje is a deadly matchup.
Gaethje's leg kicks will be a problem
The power will be a problem
The volume will be a problem
His counters will be a problem
His clinch strikes problematic
No range is safe with this guy.
His striking cardio holds up
What can max do to win? Apart from some weird counter punch TKO scenario, like
Max doesn't have knockout power like that.
He has good kicks but hasn't used them to great effect.
Sure that elbow he got kattar was nice but idk
The flurries and combos can be disrupted by Gaethje power shots.
Ironically the only area where max has a clear cut advantage is on the floor. Gaethje would not survive his top game if max stunned and knocked him down. Otherwise, this fight could turn ugly. Change my mind.

Im gonna go with punching Gaethje more than Gaethje punches him sir.

 

[StonedLemur]

This will be the start of Max' Chocolate Al/BJ Penn downhill slide. Look for him to get brutalized and never win against a good opponent again.

Booooooo!!!!

 

[WhiteMousse]

I don't know what they were thinking putting this fight together. Justin is a big ass LW. Max is not.

Justin is going to annihilate him

 

[StonedLemur]

His kick checking will definitely have to be on point.

Gaethje murders legs.

If he can check a lot of the kicks, Max can potentially outbox Justin. Outscore him with combo punching.

If you watch every fight since the Tony fight he's thrown less and less leg kicks, so hopefully he continues that trend sir.

 

[fortheo]

He will have to avoid a brawl somehow and relying on volume and point fighting to coast it to a decision win. Which I don't see it happening, Gaethje will go after him and basically force a brawl destroying his legs in the meantime and finish him within two rounds

Alvarez, poirier, khabib, and oliveira welcomed the brawl with gaethje and beat him for it. Gaethje is harder to beat when you fight at a calculated pace and give him space and time to work in my opinion. If you speed chess his ass, he'll be dangerous as fuck for like a round or two, but he gets sloppy and tired quickly fighting that way. All the fights gaethje's lost have been because of him succumbing to pressure and the fatigue of brawling.

 

[CatchtheseHands]

He doesn't.

 

[JoeRowe]

Lots of body work to end combos; lead & rear hooks + southpaw roundkicks. Teeps & Jabs to the body at range. Perhaps instigate clinch/grappling exchanges just to make him expend energy, make it survival of the fittest.

Maybe spam some highkicks from southpaw & hope to break Justin's power hand/wrist/forearm, if not land on the dome.

I'll be betting Justin but he is 35 & the BMF Title is on the line.

 

[legedema]

KO by leg kicks

 

[Harlekin]

Volume a problem? Max can throw twice as many punches. Which is about his only chance