UFC 240: Holloway retains featherweight title after 5-round 'war' with Edgar

MAX ‘Blessed’ Holloway retained his UFC featherweight world title by beating Frankie Edgar via unanimous decision at UFC 240 in Alberta, Canada, on Sunday.

The 27-year-old Hawaiian-born fighter defended his championship belt against his American opponent in the main event after a five-round ‘war’ in the Octagon.

In the first round, both fighters seemed cautious - figuring each other out and looking for openings.

Towards the end of the first round, a solid uppercut by Holloway left ‘The Answer’ bleeding through his nose.

READ: Holloway, Edgar expect 'war' in UFC 240 showdown

The second round saw more exchange of blows by the duo, followed by several take down attempts by Edgar in the third, grabbing the champion by the left leg.

Holloway landed a powerful knee strike towards Edgar, followed by a few jabs.

In the final minute of the fourth round, Edgar retaliated by landing a powerful strike on Holloway —taking him down and pinning him to the cage for few seconds before his opponent finally escaped.

The fifth round saw several more take down attempts by Edgar, which were successfully defended by Holloway, who obviously dominated the rounds.

The fight finally ended up on the ground for a few moments at 2.10 of round 5, but both fighters got back on their feet again seconds later before exchanging more blows up until the final buzz.

After the final round, all judges scored in favour Holloway, declaring him winner and still the undisputed UFC featherweight world champion.

This was Holloway’s third featherweight title defence in the UFC after successfully defending it against Jose Aldo in December 2017 and Brian Ortega in December 2018.

He now holds a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) record of 21 wins and four losses.