Athletes
Kevin Holland Always Keeps It Real
The One And Only Kevin Holland Is Back In Action At UFC 291 And He Couldn’t Be Happier To Scrap.
Kevin Holland isn’t in the business of sugarcoating.
The welterweight fan favorite keeps an open dialogue with his fans, the media, and even sometimes his opponents mid-fight.
He wants to put on a performance that has fans on the edge of their seats, and be in the type of fights that they keep talking about after they leave the arena or shut off their TV.
Order UFC 291: Poirier vs Gaethje 2
Holland knows that it’s unlikely that every fight will be fireworks, but he does his best to put on a show, no matter the matchup. This holds true, even when Holland and his elite striking goes up against a grappling specialist.
At UFC 291, Holland believes he’s in one of those matchups and the Texas native doesn’t view that as a bad thing. He’ll collide with Michael Chiesa in Salt Lake City, and he’ll have to showcase the evolution of his wrestling game.
“Styles make fights. I think this is a good style for me to prove that I can actually wrestle. I’m excited about Chiesa; it’s a good fight for me,” Holland told UFC.com. “I don’t really care about what Chiesa wants to do; it’s all about what I want to do and, at the end of the day, I don’t want to be choked by Chiesa easily. I don’t want to be choked by Chiesa at all. I definitely don’t want to give it to him easily.”
“So, we’ll go out there, Chiesa will try to choke me, which means he has to get me to the ground or grab ahold of my neck somehow. His gameplan never changes, so that sounds like a good night.”
How To Watch UFC 291: Poirier vs Gaethje 2
As a matter of fact, “Trailblazer” sees this matchup with Chiesa as a win-win. He gets to face a ranked opponent on a big card, and he’ll get to face another UFC veteran with a name.
“I think it’s really good to beat someone like Michael Chiesa because A) he’s got a number next to his name and B) he’s a veteran. I usually do pretty good against vets,” Holland said. “I’ll have a good time in there. Beating Chiesa for my career puts a number next to my name and shows I do good against wrestlers. I think that’s always a good thing and ultimately that’s what my fans want to see.”
Kevin Holland | Best Finishes
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Kevin Holland | Best Finishes
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Some of Holland’s best highlights have come in battles with UFC veterans such as Jacare Souza, Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira, Tim Means, and Santiago Ponzinibbio. He’ll look to continue that trend against Chiesa.
It will be Holland’s 19th fight in the UFC, which is wild to think about, considering he made his Octagon debut less than five years ago. He even has more fights than Chiesa (17 UFC fights) who has been in the UFC since winning The Ultimate Fighter in 2012.
Holland has hollowed out a lane for himself in the UFC, being busy in both the welterweight and middleweight divisions while taking short notice fights. He’s happy with how that’s turned out, and sees this fight with Chiesa as the next step in his plan.
See What Rankings Are On The Line At UFC 291
“Honestly, I like fighting the guys that are more like middle of the division because I always win those fights, but the guys at the top of the division, I seem to lose those ones,” Holland laughed. “So, trying to avoid those guys. The goal is to beat Chiesa then go fight cans for a year or two, and then fight another guy in the Top 15 then go fight cans again.”
“I got it all figured out. I got this “Suga” Sean O’Malley / Kevin approach. Play it smart; my style is to take a couple steps back, then play it smart again.”
It doesn’t get more honest than that.
But don’t get it twisted, Holland’s growth as a mixed martial artist has been evident as he fought his way up the middleweight rankings and battled with some of the top welterweights in the division.
Holland is saying that he is going to beat Chiesa and then take a step back, but we will just have to see what he’ll say when the UFC approaches him with a good scrap. If it’s a striker, you can bet he’ll be ready to roll.
“Hopefully [after I win] they are saying, ‘Let my boy Kev fight some strikers again,’” Holland laughed.
“I’m me. I’m just happy to be fighting. It’s a good thing.”
UFC 291: Poirier vs Gaethje 2 took place live from the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah on July 29, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
