Max Holloway emotional leading into UFC return: “With Hawaii on my back, it feels a little bit heavier now”

Max Holloway is motivated heading into his UFC Singapore return against Korean Zombie.

‘Blessed’ has been out of the cage since a win over Arnold Allen in April at UFC Kansas City. That was an important win for the former champion, coming off his loss to Alexander Volkanovski in their trilogy bout last year. Following the win this Spring, Max Holloway called to face the Korean Zombie.

Chan Sung Jung himself is coming off a defeat to ‘The Great’ at UFC 273 last year. Leading into the bout, both men are admittedly emotional. For his part, Korean Zombie has been vocal about the fact that Saturday’s fight could be his last. Meanwhile, Max Holloway has the weight of Hawaii on his shoulders.

The former featherweight champion discussed exactly that at UFC Singapore media day earlier today. There, Max Holloway stated that he was excited to face Korean Zombie, labeling it a “legacy fight”. However, he also opened up on his reaction to the devastating wildfires that recently hit Maui.

The featherweight contender previously discussed the situation in length, taking aim at the government’s poor response. However, Max Holloway was much more emotional on media day regarding the wildfires. While he always represents Hawaii, his fight with Korean Zombie means so much more now.

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“It’s all over the world, you all saw how it went down,” Max Holloway stated at UFC Singapore media day ahead of his fight with Korean Zombie. “How, the Lahaina people were let down by the state, by the government. But the Hawaii community, they stepped up. The people stepped up, the Hawaiians stepped up. After the Hawaiians stepped up, the world stepped up.”

He continued, “You’ve seen everything with people helping, the UFC is helping out with ‘UFC loves Hawaii’ [shirts], and so on and so on. It’s just, it’s a tough thing man. I just shared on my story about how some people ended up passing away and they got the names so. It’s tough man, they’re real heroes right now, they’re going through it.”

“My walkout song will be a dedication to them…I always go in there with Hawaii on my back, it’s just a little bit heavier right now.”

What do you make of these comments from Max Holloway? What do you make of his upcoming fight with Korean Zombie?