In the main event of UFC 326 on March 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Max Holloway suffered a humbling unanimous decision loss to Charles Oliveira, losing his BMF belt in a performance where he was dominated for over 20 minutes on the ground.
The former featherweight champion, who entered the bout as a betting favorite, was taken down at will by Oliveira and never found his rhythm, with all three judges scoring the fight 50-45 for the Brazilian. The loss marked Holloway’s second defeat in three fights and raised questions about his future trajectory in the lightweight division.
Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC-GettyImages
Breaking his silence on social media, Holloway took to Instagram to address fans and reflect on the disappointing performance:
“The highest of highs and the lowest of lows,” Holloway posted. “Saturday night was not my night. Sorry to all my family, friends, and fans that I have let down.”
The Hawaiian veteran showed nothing but respect for the man who dethroned him, offering praise to Oliveira for his game plan. “Shout out to Olivera for doing his thing. All class so nothing but love to him,” Holloway wrote. He added, “No excuses from this side and there never will be”.
Holloway Refuses to Quit
Despite the lopsided defeat, Holloway made it clear that retirement is not on his mind.
“I’ve been here before. I know the work I need to do to get back to where I want to be,” he stated. “We are far from done. See you guys at the top.”
In a surprising turn of events, Holloway received his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt from longtime coach Pedro Sauer in the hours following the loss. The promotion came as recognition for his defensive efforts against Oliveira, who holds the record for most submission wins in UFC history (via Pedro Sauer on Instagram):
Sauer captioned the picture, “Our new black belt, after demonstrating an incredible defense at [UFC 326].”
While some commenters believe that his lack of takedown defense was not worthy of a promotion, I believe that fending off submission attempts from Charles Oliveira (the fighter with the most submissions in UFC history) is proof enough that Holloway deserves his black belt. It’s clear that some folks still have trouble understanding the difference between wrestling and jiu-jitsu.
Respect Between Charles Oliveira and Max Holloway
Oliveira, dominated Holloway with over 20 minutes of control time and five takedowns, mixing submission attempts with relentless ground and pound.
After the fight, the new BMF champion addressed Holloway directly (via UFC on YouTube):
He stated, “I respect you so much… There are two BMFs: Charles Oliveira and Max Holloway.”
Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
‘BMF’ Backlash
The fight drew mixed reactions from fans and analysts, with some questioning whether Oliveira’s grappling-heavy approach aligned with the “stand and bang” spirit of the BMF belt.
TNT Sports expert Nick Peet went as far as to say Oliveira’s performance took the relevance out of the BMF belt:
Should the BMF title be put to bed after UFC 326❓🏆
Watch the #UFC326 review show with @AdamCatterall, @bisping and @Peety_Editor on TNT Fight Sports YouTube now ▶️ pic.twitter.com/Ut1Ev77kN0— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) March 9, 2026
Others, like MMA bettor MagicM, believe that the BMF title was always irrelevant, even before the fight went down:
The BMF belt is irrelevant garbage except for stupid fanboys of fighters that can’t sniff the real one.
People pretending a belt that doesn’t even have a weight class matters is crazy.
Don’t have to sell PPVs anymore man.
It’s WWE garbage.
Should disappear.— MagicM (@MagicM_MMABets) March 4, 2026
Holloway’s Prospects Moving Forward
Holloway, now 34, has lost three of his past five fights dating back to 2022, though the competition has included champions and legends in Oliveira, Ilia Topuria, and Alexander Volkanovski.
His last victory came against Dustin Poirier in Poirier’s retirement fight this past July, a win that kept the BMF belt around his waist until Saturday night.
Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC-GettyImages
With Oliveira moving on to likely face the winner of the upcoming Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje lightweight title fight at the White House event in June, Holloway faces an uncertain road back to contention.
For now, “Blessed” must go back to the drawing board and readjust his approach if he wants to compete with the phenomenal grapplers at the top of the lightweight division, such as Arman Tsarukyan, Benoit St. Denis, and Paddy Pimblett.
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Mar 10, 2026, where it first appeared in the MMA section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
