Kevin Holland is hoping to face Stephen Thompson or Daniel Rodriguez next time out.
Holland was supposed to face Rodriguez at UFC 279 but, after Khamzat Chimaev badly missed weight, the card was switched around and Holland was booked against the Swede. Unfortunately for Holland, he suffered a first-round submission loss. “Trailblazer” he says he lost a grappling match but did credit the Swede.
Kevin Holland vs Khamzat Chimaev Post-Fight
“Guys, I lost an amazing grappling match last night, I mean fight, my bad,” Holland said on Instagram. “Chimaev is one hell of an athlete. Still going to be talking s**t cause you know who I am.”
The loss snapped Holland’s two-fight winning streak but ‘Trailblazer’ likely didn’t lose much stock in the defeat as he took it on a day’s notice.
Following the loss, Holland says he would like to get rebooked against Rodriguez who he was supposed to fight at UFC 279, or Thompson as the two have been calling each other out. The goal is to also return by the end of the year if everything goes his way.
Who Will Kevin Holland Fight Next?
“Hate to end the year like this so I’d love to go in there against a striker,” Holland said.
“I don’t know if I’m still deserving of a ‘Wonderboy’ [Thompson] fight. I’d love a ‘Wonderboy’ fight and if not a ‘Wonderboy’ fight, D-Rod [Rodriguez]. We were all the way on task to getting it done. We had to switch it up to save the card. Maybe we can get something nice and get it going and collect another check before the end of the year.”
Holland is now 23-8 and one “no contest” and before the loss to Chimaev, he defeated Tim Means by submission and knocked out Alex Oliveira in his return to welterweight. Before moving down to 170lbs, he had a “no contest” against Kyle Daukaus and lost back-to-back scraps to Marvin Vettori and Derek Brunson.
