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taking on that man 21-year-old Max Holloway and it’ll be interesting to see how Holloway responds to the pressure fighter and it’s McGregor Landing [Applause] early wow throwing a lot of wild stuff right away he spent a lot of time in Iceland training with gunar Nelson and he he has a very similar style stance Gunner who’s a brilliant brilliant Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner but started off as a karate stylist oh look at that front leg hook kick where do you see that very rare and that’s uh one of the things that you’re seeing in Connor is this karate style stance it’s very unpredictable along with a background in amateur boxing he was a national amateur boxing champion and very much as you say shades of gunar Nelson but just a great fluidity with Conor McGregor and he continues to land upstairs on Max hollowood and that unpredictable nature of his attack makes Max hesitant he doesn’t know what’s coming it could be a front leg hook kick it could be a front hand uppercut lot of wild unorthodox openings good sweep uh good uh switch kick by Max there and that will certainly help [Applause] him those legs are wide The Stance is wide and if Max attacks those legs they’ll be there for him another thing to take into account is Max is very good on the ground and Connor’s two losses have come by submission look at this wild stuff jumping switch kick that front leg hook kick although you never see it in MMA you rarely even see it in kickboxing there was a man named Larry Kelly out of Massachusetts back in the day would knock people unconscious with a front leg hook kick it was legendary Bill superfoot Wallace another one famous kickboxer at a dynamic front leg hook kick and it’s interesting to see Conor McGregor utilizing that technique it is hard to simulate this type of pressure in training too yeah that jumping switch kick is very unique too and he throws with no wind up you see he’s throwing these kicks there’s no switch there’s no step before he throws him very much karate style and you know Max Holloway came into this fight in terms of strikes landed per minute second only to our UFC heavyweight champion Kan Velasquez in UFC history but K McGregor getting off early and often here as we pass the midpoint around one that just shows you what a freak Kane Velasquez is that 140 F 5B guy and him have a similar output ratio you see how way he’s throwing that kick that’s very much karate style and he follows it up with a straight left hand and Max looks a little bewildered there taking some hard shots that’s a nice switch that would definitely help him more the more of those he can get off the better slow down the movement and take away from the spring of Conor’s attack because it’s one of the things that Conor likes to do that that jumping switch so few guys do that Shogun used to do that a little bit in his younger days but it’s just such a it’s an unusual technique as is that front leg hook kick there it is again Feld kick to the legs Andy hook style and you see the kicks and knees landed starting to pile up for the Irishman Conor McGregor and uses that lead hand two to sort of paw and control his opponent and hands down I mean look where his hand positioning is is he’s telling him to hit him go ahead hit me oh high kick beautiful uppercup good right hand over the top by Max Max needs to get Conor’s respect and right now he’s just a little confused by all the offense that Conor’s throwing his way he’s trying to wheel kick himself but Conor saw it coming and stepped with [Applause] it Conor with the front leg Sid kick to the thigh [Applause] Max Holloway growing up in a small town in Oahu Hawaii certainly no shortage of mental toughness and he’s hanging in there he got clipped that was a a strong straight left there by [Applause] Connor Connor’s just so relaxed in there I mean it’s amazing this is the second UFC fight very high profile and look how K he is in there he believes he’s immune to pressure and that is certainly there’s a head kick Max is in all sorts of trouble here so Conor McGregor doing what he does through five minutes here against Max Holloway so just the Way Conor McGregor drew it up through five minutes here and as he said to John Kavanagh in between rounds not fatigued whatsoever these are two conditioned featherweights here on display tonight he consistently does that jumping switch technique where he lifts up his right leg and then kicks with the left oh good straight left by Connor and Max Holloway’s Corner imploring him to attack that leg and to follow it up with a straight right to move back and counter McGregor and get his respect and I think that’s imperative at this point for Max [Applause] Holloway a lot of people have suggested Conor McGregor could be very successful in boxing and then you see the kicking Acumen just an absolute pleasure to watch on display [Applause] here what’s also excellent about the way he fights is his his recognition of distance where he’s in trouble where he’s not and where he can land and where his opponent can’t like as Max moves in you see he’s really not there for him but Max is a little bit more befuddled and that’s the the much higher Landing ratio that McGregor’s showing show you the total strikes to this point in the fight McGregor 3 to one in terms of the ratio outlanding Max Holloway and really uses that lead hand as a rangefinder and not so much a jet you know you can call it three to one but it’s it’s even more significant than that because it’s the only real hard strikes of being landed by Conor right so although Max has landed a few shots here and there they’ve been glancing blows and there see that straight left by Connor I mean I don’t know how many of these Ms can continue to take you’re seeing a lot of swelling in his face and Connor is just getting loose there was a good right hand there by Max but he did it as he was moving he didn’t plant his feet and there he did but he got [Applause] countered now he’s digging his toes up yep and that’s what Max has got to do got to got to land something significant he’s got to take away some of the confidence of Connor he’s got to try to hurt him very little wasted motion for Conor McGregor and you see that nice upper cut on the inside [Applause] there now he’s mixing up his Tempo look how he’s sort of slow baiting him there with like half speed techniques and a nice left hand there the crowd responds after that hway land yeah he’s getting he’s getting used to doing that same technique over again that hop up with the right leg and throw the left kick and that time Max saw it coming here’s that good straight left again and good footwork as well sliding to the side after he lands it here he caught that kick took him down let’s see his ground game now and Max Holloway has a very good guard let’s see if he attacks off of his back or if he just tries to hold Conor Conor trying to step over that right leg of Max Holloway right now he’s in guard and he would like to get into a dominant position wants to try to step over that leg and then free his right leg as well so he keeps trying to lift that leg up Max recognizes it closes off his full guard now Max is also doing a real good job with his left arm note how he’s clamping down on the back of the neck of Connor has to keep Connor from posturing up if Connor can lift his body up and straighten up then he can generate power into his strikes as long as Max is holding on to his neck he’s fairly safe in this position but here he’s not now he’s not now he’s in trouble and now he’s got to use his legs and push Connor off of him and make sure that Connor can’t get comfortable enough to land hard blows now he’s controlling them again so far good defense by Max clamping down on the right arm of McGregor with an overhook full guard here and then closes off on his neck with his right arm good defense right now for max they’re talking to each other I don’t know what they’re saying but yeah I’m sure Conor McGregor is very well skilled in psychological warfare as well continues to keep that pressure on Joe but good guard by Max no so far okay now Conor sliced through it nicely done nicely done Max recovered a bit of a a quarter guard not really quite a half guard but he’s just basically got his legs wrapped around the ankle which is fairly easy to free up now it’s almost almost half guard he’s going to if he wants to scoot out and kick off with his right leg he should be free and he is back to half guard or back excuse me back to side control so the first eight minutes of this one we were upright now Conor McGregor showing off the ground game here towards the end of round two all Conor McGregor to this point of the fight now Max Holloway is wearing it as we get ready for our third and final round we’re seeing a lot more of Conor McGregor obviously after just a 67 second win in his UFC [Applause] there’s switching it up with front leg Sidekicks Max trying to counter with his kick good right hand by [Applause] Max and if you’re Max Holloway Joe I mean what is the strategy in trying to sort of stem the tide here and mute this offense of Conor regreg well I mean I think that what he’s got to do is somehow or another get Conor’s respect he’s got to land something or he’s got to attempt a submission lock something up he’s got to do something offensively and so far he hasn’t really been able to generate any offense and because of Connor’s unusual attacks it really it started off very badly for him so the momentum went immediately to Connor’s side and he’s never been able to get it back and now Connor goes to side control and almost mounts him but a beautiful guard pass by McGregor he’s concentrating on the left arm but he’s also the way he’s wrapping his left arm around the neck of Max Holloway makes me think that he might be thinking about choking him as [Applause] well or he might just move to a mounted crucifix and try to pound him out here I think that’s what he’s going to try to do no mounts he’s going to mount him yep not quite looks like the left leg is still trapped Max is a very tricky guard very good defensively off his back and Connor’s left leg is almost now he’s free and now Max rolls him over and Max is out nicely done by Max beautiful taked down by McGregor but in the half guard for Max Max has done a really good job at not allowing McGregor to get to full Mount and regaining guard good defensive guard but very little offense here like in this position he’s got his right arm around McGregor’s head but he’s not even attempting for a guillotine not even trying to threaten it a scary proposition to think of Conor McGregor as he continues to work on that offensive jiu-jitsu game of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Purple belt full out now he’s got him and the reason why he got that is because he secured the head and arm and by doing it that and holding on to his his arms in that position he forced Max into a position where Max couldn’t put his hands on his hips now Conor has full guard Max is trying to utilize his legs and separate the feet of Connor and maybe shift his hips and get it back to some sort of a half guard or perhaps full guard again but Max is he’s being controlled here totally by Conor McGregor but McGregor not generating anything offensive here just holding on to him slapping him a little bit putting weight on that melon two minutes to go in our third and final round and you see in this third round almost half the round Conor McGregor has been in tou position he’s not doing anything offensively from here though now he is he’s moving now Max is Shifting now he’s getting some ground and pound in now he’s got the back hard shots by McGregor from the top boy that left arm is a gift WP right there he can just take that arm if he wants to hook it and go he doesn’t want to though he wants to hold the position and keep ground and pounding him and he shifts back to Mount Big Shots by by McGregor Max wraps his arms around him try to keep Connor from posturing up Max may try to scoot out the back door if he can make a bit of an explosion and perhaps underhook one of those legs he’s got to do something to get out of this [Applause] Mount now here’s shifting he’s shifting he’s out nicely done by Max Holloway and as he gets up he’s greeted by a knee from Conor McGregor so we are upright again head kick look at this Max is going for [Applause] it McGregor turns the corner takes him down again very nice so Conor McGregor continues to score you got to respect the effort of Max Holloway here hasn’t given up but easier said than done when you have a guy like Conor McGregor doing with you what he wants to do here through much of the fight well especially the first round was an absolutely brilliant performance by McGregor the second and third have been less devastating but still [Applause] dominant so the crowd responding here down the stretch Conor McGregor with a dominant performance here tonight in Boston against Max Holloway ladies and gentlemen after three rounds we go to the judges scorecards for a decision the judges scored the contest 3027 3027 and 3026 declaring the winner by unanimous decision the notorious Conor [Applause] McGregor