Holland looks for quick redemption

Kevin Holland will be back in UFC main event action for the second time in the space of just three weeks when he faces Marvin Vettori in a middleweight match at a Fight Night on Saturday 10 April.

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The event at the APEX Facility in Las Vegas was supposed to see Vettori take on Darren Till in the headline fight, but the Englishman was forced to withdraw with a broken collarbone.

This opened the door for Holland (21-6) to step up and accept the clash at late notice, with the 28-year-old American having been in action as recently as March 20 when he suffered a unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Derek Brunson.

The loss saw ‘Trail Blazer’s’ hot streak of five straight victories (all in 2020) come to an abrupt end, but he is confident that a return to winning form is coming this weekend.

“That guy you said played too much on the last one is ready to step up and give you what he owes you,” Holland wrote on social media, referring to the defeat to Brunson when he landed more verbal barbs than actual strikes or takedowns. “Chael Sonnen said it best. Now quit begging for big mouth and start asking for TrailBlazer!”

Vettori (16-4-1), meanwhile, is on a four-fight win streak, defeating Cezar Ferreira, Andre Sanchez, Karl Roberson and Jack Hermansson from July 2019 to December 2020. His only loss in the past three and a half years has come at the hands of Israel Adesanya – the undisputed king of the middleweight division.

The 27-year-old ‘Italian Dream’ believes Holland is only a warm-up for his ultimate aim: dethroning Adesanya in a rematch.

“I’m confident that my next fight and his next fight will be him, and Israel’s next fight will be me,” said Vettori, who is nonetheless adamant that he is not looking beyond the challenge which lies in front of him.

The main card also sees Nigerian-American Sodiq Yusuff looking to claim a seventh straight win when he faces Arnold Allen in a featherweight bout, as well as Kyle Daukaus v Aliaskhab Khizriev

and Julian Marquez v Sam Alvey in the middleweight division; a women’s strawweight clash between Nina Ansaroff and Mackenzie Dern; and a welterweight opener between Mike Perry and Daniel Rodriguez.

UFC FIGHT NIGHT VETTORI V HOLLAND – MAIN CARD

Main event: Middleweight: Marvin Vettori v Kevin Holland

Featherweight: Sodiq Yusuff v Arnold Allen

Middleweight: Kyle Daukaus v Aliaskhab Khizriev

Middleweight: Julian Marquez v Sam Alvey

Women’s strawweight: Nina Ansaroff v Mackenzie Dern

Welterweight: Mike Perry v Daniel Rodriguez