Max Holloway said he’s not particularly fond of the way in which many of his fellow fighters have gleefully reacted to the recent loss of UFC prospect Sage Northcutt.

Why is Holloway (15-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) sympathetic toward the 19-year-old Northcutt following his second-round submission loss to Bryan Barberena at UFC on FOX 18 this past weekend? Mainly because he knows how it feels. “Blessed” made his UFC debut at 19, as well, and was humiliated in the form of a dominant first-round submission loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 143.

Many people could have written Holloway off after the loss, he said. Perhaps they thought he wasn’t good enough, or that he was far too young for the high-level competition of the UFC.

Fast-forward four years, though, and Holloway is on the verge of a UFC featherweight title shot. He’s on an eight-fight winning streak, and with a win over Charles Oliveira in August became the youngest fighter to reach 10 octagon victories.

Holloway said he was appalled by the outpour of hateful reactions following Northcutt’s loss to Barberena. He didn’t receive near the pushback in his first pro defeat and said Northcutt’s treatment is unfair.

“He’s 19 years old and everyone is trying to put him down and stuff – I did the same thing,” Holloway told MMAjunkie. “I lost my first one, then I won three, then I lost two in a row and now I’m on this big streak. He’s only 19, man. He’s going to be in the UFC for a long time and all I can say to him is don’t even care what these guys say.

“It’s just one fight. You can’t judge a guy off one fight. It’s so crazy with MMA in general. With MMA fans and even fighters, they do this thing where all it takes is one fight. They forgot about his first two fights where he finished guys, but now it’s all about one fight where he gets tapped out and everyone is on him. I can relate with him, even with my Jeremy Stephens fight (at UFC 194 in December). I was taking so much heat for not finishing Jeremy, but I’m on this win streak and they don’t even remember me finishing guys in my last fights. It blows my mind the way some people think.”

The reason Holloway wasn’t criticized in the same way as Northcutt can be easily explained. Holloway’s UFC debut and loss flew somewhat under the radar, while Northcutt has been heavily promoted through his first three appearances with the organization.

Northcutt was signed to the UFC after company President Dana White discovered him on his “Lookin’ For a Fight” web series. Northcutt’s disclosed pay for his second UFC fight, a submission of Cody Pfister at UFC Fight Night 80 in December, totaled $80,000, which is a number significantly higher than nearly all fighters make so early in their careers.

Between Northcutt’s overwhelming media attention and purse, Holloway said he could understand why some would be resentful of the youngster. He said that’s misdirected outrage, though, because ultimately Northcutt’s not to blame for being put in that position.

“At the end of the day he got the big paycheck for his second fight in the UFC and everybody saw it,” Holloway said. “I was tripping out like, ‘Oh (expletive), he makes a lot.’ He got this big promotional push from the UFC, but it is what it is. I’m not going to hate the person. It’s not his fault that the UFC is getting behind him. He had something and the UFC jumped on it. You can’t hate somebody for having something you don’t.”

Nevertheless, Northcutt’s UFC career is going to go on. He was seemingly in high spirits following his first career defeat and likely will make his next octagon appearance sooner rather than later.

Holloway said that’s the perfect plan, because all an athlete can do after a loss is attempt to get back on track. Every great fighter in the sport has suffered at least one loss, Holloway said, and if Northcutt is discouraged, all he should do is look at some of the sport’s best athletes and see they’ve all experienced turbulence in their respective careers.

“All the greats got at least one to three losses on their record; everybody that’s a champion has at least one loss on their record,” Holloway said. “It happens in this sport, especially with these little gloves. You’re fighting the best guys in the world and all it takes is one little slip-up. That’s all it takes. He slipped up.

“My advice to him is just keep grinding and getting better. Go out there and get ready for the next one and prove them all wrong and show them that you’re here to stay. He’s got much more years in the UFC and one fight won’t define you.”

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