Calvin Kattar is planning on keeping himself in fight shape in case he’s called upon to challenge for a piece of UFC hardware.
Alex Volkanovski was expected to put the UFC Featherweight Championship on the line against Holloway in the main event of UFC 272 this March. This was going to be the third matchup between the two. Ultimately, Holloway was removed from the card due to an injury.
Ariel Helwani reported that “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung will be the one to replace Holloway. He’s expected to challenge Volkanovski at UFC 273 this April.
Calvin Kattar Not Interested In Trash Talk
On The MMA Hour, Helwani said Calvin Kattar could’ve made a strong case for jumping ahead of Jung for the next title shot after his bloody unanimous decision win over Giga Chikadze. Kattar said it’s not his style to demand things.
“A lot of these guys they cut the line with their mouths rather than earning it with their fights. I’d rather talk less about it, go out and prove it cause that’s the only thing that really matters. Go out and earn your title shot.
“I know guys like Max, guys like Volkanovski they want contenders. They can see through the bullsh*t more than the casual people that are chiming in. All I’m trying to do is prove that I’m the number one contender and fight anybody that I have to in order to go out and get these big opportunities like the Maxes and the Alexes.”
Staying Ready
Kattar went on to say that in the event that “Korean Zombie” can’t take the title fight, he will be prepared.
“As far as that main event title fight, I know uncrowned champ Max Holloway’s next in line but should he not be recovered by the time the fight happens or the situation makes sense — I know ‘Zombie’ wasn’t planning on jumping the line.
“So, crazy things have happened but I’ll be ready to go just in case. I know things are in shambles a little bit right now so all I can do is focus on being as ready as possible should I get the call.”
Kattar’s performance against Chikadze at UFC Vegas 46 was something to behold. He seemingly landed elbows at will but Chikadze never gave up all the way until the final horn. It was a huge victory for Kattar, who had question marks after being on the receiving end of a vicious five-round beating at the hands of Holloway, which was so bad that UFC President Dana White had concerns over his health.
