UFC 240: Frankie Edgar Shares Why he Believes he Was “Rewarded”

Not everyone’s on board with Frankie Edgar getting booked for a title shot ahead of Alexander Volkanovski. But, not surprisingly, the former lightweight champ believes he’s done his part to earn another championship fight.

Edgar’s been campaigning for a bout with featherweight champ Max Holloway for a while now, but, leading up to UFC 237, it wasn’t clear whether he’d get it. The consensus seemed to be that if Jose Aldo beat Volkanovski at the event, then Edgar would get his wish. Aldo has already been defeated by Holloway twice. But, since Volkanovski was coming off a win over Chad Mendes, and had won all six of his UFC bouts, everyone understood his case for a title shot would be very, very strong, if he beat Aldo.

Well, despite Volkanovski’s decision victory over the legend at UFC 237, it’s been reported Holloway – Edgar is in the works for UFC 240, July 27th.

Edgar spoke with MMA Fighting following that news. While discussing the fact he’s been tapped ahead of Volkanovski, and what he’s accomplished in the UFC, Edgar he said this:

“I think it should matter,” the New Jersey fighter said while referring to his resume. “You hear Dana [White] and UFC brass, they like people that step up, they like guys that are willing to put it all on the line, and I think my whole career I’ve done that. And I think that’s why I got rewarded.

“I think so, based on my past history with the UFC, and then the landscape of the way went down with me and Holloway, I think it just makes sense. I don’t want to take anything away from Alex, he’s a stud fighter. He’s won a bunch of fights in a row. He’s going to get his time. I was him not too long ago, and he’s going to get his time. I know he’s probably a little upset, because I’ve been there before. But his time will come.”

Now, if you’re a hardcore fan who believes title shots should be awarded based on what you’ve done most recently, then, you probably still think Volkanovski should have got it. After all, Edgar is only one win removed from his loss to Ortega.

But, as Edgar alluded to, in terms of stepping up, his loss to Ortega came after Holloway was forced out of UFC 222. Edgar agreed to face Ortega in a non-title fight. Further, on account of what Edgar’s done during his amazing career, chances are the UFC wanted to do him a solid before his career comes to an end. Plus, the fact he’s a fan favorite doesn’t hurt either. So, in other words, the fact Edgar’s getting his crack at Holloway, is no surprise.