Jack Della Maddalena is not treating Max Holloway‘s 170-pound cameo like a cute little side quest. After training with Holloway before UFC 329, the former welterweight champion thinks Blessed has real business in a division that already has sharks everywhere. Holloway has already been linked to the Islam Makhachev conversation at 170, and the UFC 329 injury weirdness only made the whole thing louder.
Holloway beat Conor McGregor in Saturday’s UFC 329 headliner at T-Mobile Arena, but the fight barely got to breathe. McGregor’s knee went out 69 seconds in, giving Holloway a TKO win and leaving everyone arguing about what the night actually told us. After McGregor vowed he would be back from the injury loss, Della Maddalena gave Holloway the kind of endorsement that makes the 170-pound talk feel a lot less goofy.
Della Maddalena spoke after UFC 329 and said Holloway looked strong enough in camp to do damage at welterweight. Watch the source interview below.
“Man, I was thinking he was going to take over the fight from the get-go and win. I was like, just to be able to train with someone like Max, it was incredible. I thought he was going to do well. And I think he would do well. Like, he would clean up 170 if he wanted to.”
That is a pretty strong stamp from someone who knows exactly how ugly welterweight can get. Della Maddalena did not just watch Holloway from a couch and fire off a hot take. He helped him in camp, felt the strength, saw the pace up close, and still came away thinking Holloway could be more than a famous featherweight visiting a bigger weight class.
Della Maddalena Thinks Holloway Got Out Clean From A Strange UFC 329 Ending
The fight itself was a bizarre bit of MMA theater. Holloway, now 28-9 as a pro, was supposed to get a real read on his welterweight future against McGregor. Instead, the bout ended almost immediately when McGregor’s knee gave out, which robbed Holloway of a clean showcase but also kept him from taking damage in a dangerous money fight.
Della Maddalena saw the positive in that mess. He said being around Holloway’s camp made him happy to see Blessed leave Las Vegas with the win and no extra mileage.
“Just being invested in Max’s camp, I’m just stoked he got out, you know, unscathed with the win, onto bigger and better things. It’s a dangerous sport and these things happen. I feel like Conor came out and just gave it, I don’t know if it was so much energy, just that pushed so much into it, but yeah, that’s just fight game, anything can happen.”
Holloway’s next move is the tricky part. He called for another McGregor fight after UFC 329, but Chael Sonnen has already argued that Holloway wasted a bigger moment by chasing the trilogy. If McGregor’s knee keeps him out for a long stretch, Holloway may have to choose between waiting for the circus or jumping into the deep end at welterweight.
Della Maddalena did not rule out the trilogy, but he also admitted McGregor’s recovery could change the timeline. Asked if Holloway and McGregor would do it again after both rematches ended with injuries, he said, “I don’t know. I mean, that depends how bad the knee is, right? That could be a whole year, so but we’ll see.”
That leaves Holloway in a strange but powerful spot. He did not get the highlight-reel war he wanted at UFC 329, yet he left with a win, a fresh 170-pound talking point, and a former champion saying he can hang with the big boys. With Islam Makhachev’s welterweight run already pulling new names into the title picture, Holloway has options if he wants to make 170 more than a one-off experiment.
