This past Saturday at UFC 287, Kevin Holland had his greatest victory as an UFC middleweight fighter. What makes this win even more impressive is that he was also going through a tough time, having lost two matches already and getting injured in the last one.
Holland was injured right before his fight against Ponzinibbio. He was unsure if he could make it to the ring in time and at full strength. Despite this, Holland beat Ponzinibbio in the third round with a knockout.
The day of the fight, Holland put on four-ounce gloves for the first time and when he punched, felt a bit worried it wouldn’t work. After the fight, he told UFC President Dana White that he was kinda nervous if his hands could handle the four ounces but they did anyway.
Holland has since been doing very well in his fights, and won 3 out of 5 since reducing down to 170 pounds. He also defeated an opponent who already had a reputation in the UFC field. All five victories of Holland were either by knockout or submission.
After the match with Thompson, he needed surgery and for a few weeks before UFC 287, he trained using only one hand.
I didn’t let my hand work until the 24th of March. So for a while I was only working with one hand and wearing big gloves. Even when I got cleared, I wasn’t sure if it would stay that way until the fight night. So I had to hope it would last!
We wanted to try out a plan so we decided to use the jab and it worked out, making me really happy. Holland joked that he talked to his mom before the fight and ignored her suggestion to call it off. But after the fight, she didn’t seem bothered at all.
Despite his physical disadvantage, Holland needed to think strategically in order to beat his opponent, Ponzinibbio. He said that it was his own unique ideas that allowed him to get the victory.
I knew that I didn’t want to use my right hand, so I focused on using jabs and lead hooks, as well as trying to kick but he was very good at blocking my attempts. This guy had a lot of experience, having fought 30 times before our fight. He was good at blocking my kicks by turning his shin away from me so I had to be creative with him.
Holland was feeling the pressure since he was scared of having three losses in a row. Luckily, he had to use his other hand more often instead, and it ended up being useful for him.
He said it was tough to go out and work with only one hand, but he felt determined. People tend to act differently when you are in a difficult situation, like he found himself in. It always sucks when things don’t go your way, but this wasn’t his first time experiencing some failure so he didn’t feel too bad. He tried to stay optimistic by telling himself that he’ll still do good using his left hand even if he can no longer use his right hand.
My dad is left-handed, and he always told me it would be a good idea to learn how to use my left hand. He said my left hand will become my best friend and sure enough, it did!
