FanPost

Cole Miller on Max Holloway fight: 'Somebody is going down' at UFC Fight Night 60

Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

American Top Team (ATT) featherweight Cole Miller looks to notch his fourth UFC victory in five fights when he faces Max "Blessed" Holloway at UFC Fight Night 60 tomorrow night (Sat., Feb. 14, 2015) in Broomfield, Colorado.

New-found fatherly duties, along with his Nintendo 3DS and two cats (not to mention his fight camp) have kept the 30-year-old veteran busy during his nearly 13-month layoff. Miller (21-8) re-aggravated a broken left hand last May -- an injury he sustained in his second-round submission win over Sam Sicilia -- and was unable to compete against current No. 1 featherweight contender Conor McGregor in Dublin back at UFC Fight Night 46.

A lot of men have a bone to pick with the Irishman, who made it his business to dethrone 145-pound champion Jose Aldo.

One of them is Miller.

The two have participated in spirited debates on The MMA Hour and have made their dispute no public secret. Though he "still wants that fight," Miller knows he has to beat Holloway this Saturday night if he eventually wants the opportunity McGregor has earned.

"I think he showed a lot of maturity in his past several bouts. I think since fighting Conor, he's really started to put some things together," Miller recently told MMAmania.com.

The Hawaiian-born Holloway has taken a major step forward since suffering a two-fight losing skid in 2013 by reeling off four-straight victories. "Blessed" has taken out three of the four men, including Akira Corassani and Clay Collard, via knockout/technical knockout.

Holloway (11-3) sits at No. 13 in the featherweight rankings and is a prolific kickboxer. The 23-year-old has a style that's hard to adapt to, avoiding 69 percent of strikes sent his way, according to FightMetric. But he is also capable of being put on his back, as was the case against McGregor.

Miller hopes he can have the same success, albeit with his high-level jiu-jitsu skills and maybe even his boxing.

"I think he has an advantage in the kickboxing and his versatility, but if you want to talk about who’s a better boxer; any educated critic will look at past performances and tell you that I’m a better boxer," said Miller.

His teammate, perennial featherweight contender Dustin Poirier, previously fought Holloway. Miller has "watched a lot of tape" on Max but says he hasn't consulted with "The Diamond" since his meeting with him was three years ago.

Miller also looks to become just the second person, since Poirier, to finish Holloway. The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Season 5 vet should really be nicknamed The Choke Collector for accumulating seven submission victories in his near eight-year Octagon tenure.

Though his fight with "Blessed" is the co-main event at UFC Fight Night 60, Miller is confident that he and Holloway can steal the show come fight night.

"If you like seeing good Brazilian jiu-jitsu, boxing and kickboxing, this is the one you’ll be waiting by the TV to watch," Miller said emphatically.

The Georgia native has carved out a niche in the featherweight division after previously fighting at lightweight for the first four years of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career. Miller has seen some success but also quite a few pitfalls.

A career-defining win is the only thing lacking from his laundry list of fights. However, the ATT fighter was recently awarded a new four-fight contract in April for his typically entertaining forays into the Octagon.

Though his fight career has been filled with plenty of ups and downs, Miller is still smiling and recently welcomed a baby boy into the world named Link. His son, aptly named after the main character in his favorite video game franchise, breathed new life into his world.

While fatherhood is one of the most joyous experiences a young man could possess, it has also put some constraints on his time and wallet.

I’ve got a family to feed -- you can hear Link over here crying. You think I like going over a year without making any money? Living off of credit cards and shit? Fuck all this noise. I’m trying to fight three times a year, 10 if I can stay healthy. He doesn’t live down here with me. I’ve got a house and my girlfriend ... they live in Georgia. I come down here for my work. Before Christmas, I had to fly up there. I don’t live in Atlanta, I don’t live in Athens where there’s like bad ass gyms. I live like two hours from the American Top Team in Atlanta or The HardCore Gym in Athens.

Miller has endured an abbreviated camp ahead of his tussle with Holloway. He began training in Macon, Georgia at the nearby Rush MMA gym.

Despite that, Miller feels that the judges won't be necessary come Feb. 14.

"You know him finishing his last four, and in my 10 UFC victories I have eight finishes. Somebody is probably going down and hopefully I get my hand raised," Miller said.

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