Max Holloway trains for Conor McGregor rematch

Max Holloway is already moving like a man with Conor McGregor on the calendar, even if the UFC has not put the contract in front of him yet. The rumored rematch at UFC 329 has started to pick up real heat, and Holloway is not trying to cool it down. He wants the fight, he wants the old loss back, and he knows exactly why people are talking about it again.

Holloway said he has started training for McGregor, but admitted the strange part of this whole situation is simple: nothing is signed. For a fighter, that is an uncomfortable place to be. Training camp is hard enough when the opponent, date and money are locked in. Doing it while the biggest name in UFC history is still only a rumor makes every week feel a little heavier.

Still, Holloway is not acting like this came out of nowhere. He and McGregor have history going all the way back to 2013, when McGregor beat him during their featherweight rise. Holloway has carried that result for years, not in a desperate way, but in the way top fighters remember the names that got one over them. He said he would love to get that one back, and that line alone tells you where his head is.

There is also a clean reason this fight makes sense for Holloway. McGregor is talking about a comeback, UFC 329 is tied to International Fight Week in Las Vegas, and Holloway remains one of the few active stars with the name, style and history to make McGregor’s return feel like a real fight instead of a nostalgia act.

The McGregor rematch has old history and new pressure

The first fight between Holloway and McGregor happened before both men became what they are now. McGregor was still climbing toward superstardom. Holloway was still developing into one of the most durable and dangerous featherweights the UFC has ever seen. Since then, both careers have moved through titles, setbacks, wild nights and long public conversations.

That is why a rematch in 2026 would not feel like a simple runback. It would be a completely different fight between two very different versions of the same men. Holloway is older, smarter and more complete. McGregor has been away from the cage for years and has not fought since the leg injury against Dustin Poirier in 2021. The name still moves the sport, but the questions around him are no longer small.

• Holloway says he wants to get the 2013 loss to McGregor back.
• He has started preparing, but the UFC contract is not signed yet.
• UFC 329 is expected to close International Fight Week in Las Vegas.
• McGregor has not fought in the UFC since his 2021 loss to Dustin Poirier.

For Holloway, the appeal is obvious. He does not need to chase every loud fight, but this one is different. McGregor is the only man from that old chapter who still has a result over him that can be sold at this scale. A win would not just be another name on Holloway’s record. It would close a loop that has followed him for more than a decade.

What the rumored UFC 329 fight would mean

The uncomfortable part is that Holloway has seen what can happen when fighters wait too long for McGregor. Michael Chandler spent years attached to that comeback conversation and lost a huge piece of his career timeline while the fight drifted. Holloway is too experienced not to understand that risk. He can want the fight badly and still know that a verbal direction is not the same thing as a signed UFC contract.

That is why his tone matters. Holloway sounds interested, not helpless. He is preparing, but he is not begging. He knows the fight is massive, but he also knows his own value. At this stage of his career, Holloway is not just a former champion being called in for someone else’s comeback. He is a star in his own right, a fan favorite, a proven five-round fighter and one of the few men who can meet McGregor’s name without being swallowed by it.

Holloway gives the UFC a fight fans already understand

The UFC does not have to work hard to explain Holloway vs McGregor 2. The story is already there. McGregor beat Holloway when both were young. Holloway went on to become a champion and one of the most respected fighters of his era. McGregor became the biggest draw the sport has ever had, then disappeared from competition for years. Now the rematch is floating over International Fight Week, and Holloway is saying exactly what fans want to hear.

There is also a style reason people will care. Holloway believes McGregor will not turn it into a wrestling match, and that gives the fight a cleaner shape in his mind. He wants a striking fight. He wants the chance to stand across from McGregor again and test what is left of that famous timing, power and confidence after such a long break.

For McGregor, the danger is obvious. Holloway is not an easy comeback opponent. He can keep a pace most fighters hate, he can absorb pressure, and he has spent years fighting elite names while McGregor has been outside the cage. If McGregor returns against Holloway, he is not easing back in. He is walking straight into a fighter who has been waiting years to fix one old result.

For now, the fight remains unsigned. That is the only part holding the story back. Holloway is training. The rumors are loud. UFC 329 needs a main event that feels big enough for International Fight Week. If the UFC gets the deal done, Holloway vs McGregor 2 will not need much decoration. The history is already doing the work.