FRESNO, Calif. – Frankie Edgar is hoping to reschedule his UFC featherweight championship fight with Max Holloway in the first quarter of next year after a training injury forced him to withdraw from the original matchup.

Less than four weeks out from UFC 218 earlier this month, Edgar (22-5-1 MMA, 16-5-1 UFC) suffered a broken orbital bone in training. He was unable to compete against Holloway (19-3 MMA, 15-3 UFC), who beat replacement opponent Jose Aldo (26-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) with a third-round TKO.

Edgar said he will be cleared in the coming days and is ready to fight Holloway as soon as UFC 222 in March. He’s disappointed he couldn’t challenge “Blessed” the first time around, and although he got some criticism from UFC President Dana White for his injury, Edgar doesn’t feel it was an easily avoidable occurrence.

“You got to crack eggs to make an omelette sometimes, unfortunately,” Edgar told MMAjunkie. “I’ve been in this game for a long time. That’s never happened. Nothing crazy, I wasn’t being negligent, just sparring. To get ready for a guy like Max Holloway you’ve got to spar decent. Four weeks, I wish I could go back and maybe change things, but it’s just the way it goes.

“I think it was a freak accident,” he continued. “It’s tough to not take hits. I’m training for a fight, have guys punching and kicking at me. It was really a freak accident. I’m really not anticipating something like that to happen again.”

Edgar described the emotion of pulling out of UFC 218 as “heartbreaking.” He was forced to witness Holloway successfully defend the belt from the sidelines and said it only made him more eager to share the octagon with the Hawaiian titleholder.

“It felt like a death the in the family,” Edgar said. “It felt like a loss. I trained hard and didn’t really get to compete. Watching the fight, it left a pit in my stomach the whole time. But I’m looking to re-book that fight and looking to get in there with Holloway as soon as he’s able.

“I think it’s the fight that makes most sense. We haven’t fought. He’s kind of running through everybody. Let’s me and him get it done. We had a plan. I know the fans want to see it. I’m pretty sure Max wants to fight me, so let’s make it happen.”

Nicknamed “The Answer,” Edgar believes he’s the 145-pound contender best suited to halt Holloway’s 12-fight UFC winning streak. Holloway has been one of the UFC’s best fighters over the past half decade, but former lightweight champ Edgar has been with the organization for over a decade, and he’s done quite well in that time.

“I’m just going to give the credit to Holloway,” Edgar said. “Aldo looked good first and second round, then Holloway turned it on just like the first fight. The guy is phenomenal. He throws a bunch of punches. He’s a tough mountain to climb right now.”

For complete coverage of UFC 218, check out the UFC Events section of the site.