Frankie Edgar: ‘I might jump in there again’ if Max Holloway won’t be ready after UFC 222

Former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar was scheduled for his second title shot at featherweight against Max Holloway, supposedly at UFC 222 on March 3rd. The champion, however, was forced out of the matchup due to a leg injury, leaving Edgar to face fast-rising undefeated fighter Brian Ortega.

But instead of waiting around for Holloway, “The Answer” plans to keep himself active.

”I just want to fight,” Edgar told FloCombat. “I got so close to the December fight and got hurt and preparing, I just didn’t want to waste another camp. I felt like in December I pretty much wasted eight weeks of training to get hurt.”

“Here we are four weeks away from this fight, and I didn’t want to waste another six weeks of training and not being able to fight. I’ve got to get paid. I only get paid when I’m in there and if I’m not fighting, I’m not making money.”

”It’s too long. I am 36 years old,” Edgar continued. “I’ll never get these months and days back, so I’ve got to make the best of them when I can.”

It has not been determined how long Holloway would be out, but if he would not be available after UFC 222, Edgar is looking to move on to the next top guy, until the champion gets back in action.

”I want to go out there and fight March 3 and if Max is ready to go fairly quick, then yeah I’ll probably wait for Max,” Edgar said. “But if he’s still maybe not ready until the end of summer, I might jump in there again. I want to fight. This is what I want to do. The belt, it is a goal of mine, I don’t want to say I’ve lost sight of that but I’ve been waiting around and two times so close didn’t come. I just want to fight.”

”March 3— fight — if Max is ready to go in June that would be perfect. If he’s still not ready to go, I might jump in there again. Who knows.”

UFC 222 will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. With Holloway’s pullout, the event will now be headlined by the women’s featherweight title fight between Cris Cyborg and Yana Kunitskaya.