Max Holloway stunned everyone in Rio de Janeiro — especially Jose Aldo.
Holloway clubbed Aldo repeatedly during Round 3 of their featherweight bout at UFC 212 Saturday night en route to a third-round TKO.
“Blessed” used a flurry of punches to knock Aldo onto his back, before jumping onto Aldo and pummeling the hometown favorite. Holloway relentlessly drilled Aldo, who was unable to shake the challenger off him. The referee called the fight at the 4:13 mark of the third round, making Holloway the undisputed featherweight champion.
Holloway, who hasn’t lost a fight since Conor McGregor defeated him 2013, was confident from the opening bell.
Round 1 was a cautious beginning for both fighters as neither wanted to open up to give the other a clean look. Aldo got Holloway with a knee, but “Blessed” was able to stay on his feet and answer by stinging Aldo with a left-hand hook.
The two fighters really began to get going in the second round. Aldo opened up the round by delivering a punishing blow to Holloway’s torso. The interim champ returned fire by connecting with a quick 1-2 combo. Both fighters ended the round with flurries as Holloway delivered a blow to the head, while Aldo landed a spin kick to the body.
Round 3 would be all she wrote for the reigning featherweight champion as a fantastic 1-2 combo from Holloway sent Aldo to the mat. Holloway got Aldo in a full mount and punished him with blows to the head. Holloway tried to go for the rear-naked choke but was unable to get underneath Aldo’s chin, so he continued to blast Aldo’s head with crippling punches until the fight was called.
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Thumbnail photo via Tom Szczerbowski/USA TODAY Sports Images