American UFC star Max Holloway says he learned some of his best fighting moves by playing video games

• Former UFC champion Max Holloway learned some of his fighting moves from playing the UFC video game.
• Holloway told reporters at a media day attended by Insider that he would look at how fighters like Jose Aldo and Renan Barao would throw combinations on UFC games.
• He'd then repeat them during mittwork sessions with a friend.
• Holloway competes in a lightweight match against Calvin Kattar in the main event of the UFC's first show of its third residency on Fight Island.

FIGHT ISLAND - American UFC star Max Holloway says he learned some of his fighting moves by playing video games.

Holloway first mentioned the unconventional practise on the Joe Rogan Experience in 2019, telling the host that if a particular combination worked in the UFC game, he'd try to recreate it during mittwork sessions with a friend.

Rogan laughed at the thought but Holloway was unfazed and said it got him quite far in the fight game.

Holloway returns Saturday to the UFC Octagon for a featherweight match against Calvin Kattar, and told reporters at a Fight Island press conference in Abu Dhabi that he studied striking combinations from Jose Aldo and Renan Barao.

"It wasn't punches as I knew how to kickbox, but I was figuring out combos like Renan Barao," Holloway said at the media day Insider attended.

"Renan Barao was a killer in the first UFC game and I remember there's a couple combos I'd do, and I was like, bro, I got three or four knockouts in a row with the same combo.

"At the time I didn't have a mitt-man, and so that's what we'd do. We'd call this the Renan, we'd call this the Aldo. It was super fun, super cool.

"People would say, 'You're just playing games!' and I'd be, like, 'No, I'm not, I'm actually getting better at fighting.' And I wasn't lying! I beat Aldo because I knew him like the back of my hand by playing the video game like him."

Playing the UFC video game was perhaps the best way Holloway would get to know an opponent as he also said he rarely watches fights.

"No disrespect to any fighter but I don't watch no fights," Holloway said. "I hate watching fights to be honest.

"I like watching some of my friends in big fights that's happening. But, I don't know … do you guys watch other journalism interviews? It's kinda boring. So I don't watch fights."

The first UFC video game, published by EA Sports, was released in 2014, and there have been three sequels. However, these days Holloway gets his fix on Facebook gaming.

He only has one rule, though - no fight talk.

"Come on through," he said, welcoming visitors to his channel.

"We don't really talk about MMA so if any of you guys come in, you guys are gonna get banned. My mods don't play around. Any fight talk, one to two times, then the ban hammer."

Holloway fights Kattar in the main event of the UFC's first show of its third Fight Island residency, which broadcasts on ABC in the US from the Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi.

Read more:

'UFC Champion-in-waiting' Calvin Kattar still uses lessons he learned from training with the Diaz brothers more than a decade ago

Conor McGregor confirms talks with Manny Pacquiao over a $250 million world championship boxing match

Jake Paul's merciless trolling of Conor McGregor's fight team continues as he belittles the Irishman's sparring partner

Georges St. Pierre says he used to cry before bouts early in his career and never enjoyed fighting in the UFC

Khabib Nurmagomedov had a $100 million offer to fight Floyd Mayweather and Dana White was 'on board,' says manager