Calvin Kattar’s Coach Explains Why He Didn’t Stop Fight Against Holloway

Tyson Chartier, the head coach of Calvin Kattar, has explained why he didn’t stop the fight against Max Holloway.

In the main event of UFC Fight Island 7, Holloway and Kattar met in what many thought would be a very even fight. However, the Hawaiian put on a striking clinic and set a new record for most significant strikes landed in a fight.

In the fourth round, Holloway was turning it on Kattar and many thought the corner should throw in the towel. Yet, that did not happen. Chartier said he was close to stopping it and explained why he didn’t.

“It definitely did [get close to us stopping it],” Chartier stated to MMAFighting. “I’m sitting in the corner and every time things were getting really bad, Calvin’s back was to us, and we see Max, and we see Herb. There was a couple of times when we were like, ‘F*ck, is he gonna stop it?’ And I was hoping Herb would stop it. And then all of a sudden we saw he wasn’t going to stop it, we were like, ‘Should we throw in the towel?’ And then I’m thinking we’re gonna throw in the towel, and then Calvin would crack him. Then he would get off the fence and start landing shots. Like, damn it!”

Kattar’s Close Came Close To Stopping Fight

Chartier found the bout just as hard to watch as many spectators at home. UFC President Dana White said himself that he wanted the fight to be stopped, and Kattar’s coach wanted the same thing. But it was Kattar who gave him just enough reason not to step in and pull the plug.

“The only way to describe it is that I was looking for a reason to stop it and every time I was about to, he would give us a reason not to. It’s a tough spot to be in because you have the make a judgement call in real-time based on the facts that you’re presented. And, yeah, there was a couple of times I thought Herb was going to stop it, but he’s looking Calvin in the eye. I’m behind Calvin, so it’s like Herb has a better view than we do and Calvin is fighting back. He’s landing good shots.

“There was one point in the fourth round where I looked at Jake [Mainini], the Muay Thai coach, and I was like, ‘Dude, Max is getting tired.’ It was crazy because he was beating us up, but you could see it in his eyes like, ‘Ughh,’ and then he tried to wrestle, tried to take us down, he was getting tired from beating us up and then Calvin landed a good shot again and the round ended.”

Calvin Kattar ended up losing a clear-cut decision but was tough to survive. However, the loss is no doubt disappointing for him as he was looking to become the next title challenger.

Do you think Calvin Kattar’s coach should have stopped the fight against Max Holloway?