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Max Holloway vows he is fighting at UFC 231 and doesn’t care if it’s Brian Ortega, Renato Moicano or someone else entirely standing across the octagon from him.

Holloway (19-3 MMA, 15-3 UFC) enters next month’s UFC 231 event following the most turbulent year of his career. He had three fights canceled for a range of reasons that spread from injury at UFC 222 in March to weight cutting at UFC 223 in April to a confusing diagnosis that’s still difficult to understand at UFC 226 in July.

The UFC featherweight champion returns for a scheduled title defense against Ortega (14-0 MMA, 6-0 UFC) at UFC 231, though, and said he’s unconcerned about the past and is focused on the future.

“That last fight was some freaking craziness,” Holloway told MMAjunkie on Wednesday. “It’s just crazy what happened. I feel great. I can’t wait to go ahead and do it. That last fight was just crazy circumstances. (Expletive) happens, so I can’t wait.”

UFC 231 takes place Dec. 8 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto. Holloway vs. Ortega headlines the pay-per-view main card following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Holloway, No. 1 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA featherweight rankings, brushed off any concerns about his health and said the UFC would’ve “stripped my ass” if he wasn’t in the proper to condition to make 145 pounds and defend his title against No. 2 Ortega.

It was an unwelcome career hiccup, but Holloway said he intends to pick up exactly where he left off as one of the most successful fighters in the sport who is currently riding a 12-fight winning streak.

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“Why fix something that’s not broken?” Holloway said. “Ortega’s been doing something great. I’m a fighter. I fight whenever. I fight whoever. You’ve got to be ready to go if you’re the best in the world, and I believe I’m the best in the world. Training has been going great and ready to put all this talk about a ‘New Era’ – it’s still the ‘Blessed Era’ in full effect.”

Given Holloway’s recent history of failing to make it to the octagon, the UFC has assigned No. 6 featherweight contender Moicano (13-1-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) as the backup fighter for UFC 231. That means the Brazilian will make weight for the card and be prepared to step in if one of the current headliners is unable to compete.

Moicano released a statement to MMAjunkie jokingly telling the champion he’ll be ready to jump in for him if he wants to stay away from the Toronto cold and return to Hawaii, where it’s much warmer. Holloway found that to be humorous.

“Tell Moicano thank you for the offer, but I’ll be seeing him sooner or later,” Holloway said. “Just be ready for anything. Thank you for the offer. He’s a great dude, cool guy, awesome guy. That’s very funny. I look forward to seeing that guy, too, one day.”

If something unfortunate happens to Ortega, though, Holloway said he’ll be prepared to shift gears and defend his belt against Moicano.

“I would take him on three hours’ notice,” Holloway said. “I’ll take you on an hour’s notice. I don’t care. Everyone was like, ‘The Khabib (Nurmagomedov) fight, you’re crazy for taking this on a weeks’ notice.’ Look, they’re taking the fight with me. You’re taking a fight with me. I don’t care who it is. Whoever. They’ve got to remember who they’re fighting and who they’re fighting against, and that’s me.”

Currently, though, Holloway is focused on Ortega and what he needs to do to extend his winning streak to 13. Holloway believes some may have forgotten what he’s capable of during his year away, but plans to change that with another stellar performance.

“I’m going to go out there and do what I do best,” Holloway said. “I’m going to open the door for you and whenever you’re ready, grab your hand and walk you through it. Thank you, come again. People keep saying this is going to be one of my hardest fights. I’m going to go out there and make people like, ‘What was that?’ That’s my game plan.”

For more on UFC 231, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.