Last Saturday in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 38, we saw a middleweight showdown between Kevin Holland (21-7, 1 NC) and Kyle Daukaus (10-2, 1 NC). Holland was looking to snap his two-fight losing streak.
In 2020, you couldn’t get much better than Kevin Holland in the UFC. His personality was infectious and he was a perfect 5-0. That blistering year earned him a main event spot earlier this year against Derek Brunson.
Had Holland won that fight, the UFC would’ve put him in title contention. However, he ultimately fell short against Brunson. Then, he took a short-notice main event against Marvin Vettori and again fell short.
In both of those fights, Holland was exposed for not having the best wrestling. Prior to UFC Vegas 38, Holland switched things up and started training with former welterweight champion and national champion wrestler, Johny Hendricks.
Holland was excited to show off his new defensive wrestling and he did that early on at UFC Vegas 38. However, the fight wouldn’t last much longer and it ended in a very odd fashion.
UFC will run it back
Both men advanced for strikes in the first round and the two clashed heads. Holland had Daukaus’ head land right on his chin and it essentially put him out. He was really never able to recover.
Eventually, Daukaus got his back and was able to submit him for the win at UFC Vegas 38. However, the referees got together after the fight and started talking about what led to the submission.
Ultimately, it was ruled that the headbutt led to the finish and the fight was ruled a No Contest. Everyone, including Daukaus, seemed content with the decision. Holland was actually the one saying he thought he should’ve lost because if it was in the streets, he would’ve lost.
The UFC has decided to run things back as a result of Saturday. ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reported this afternoon that the two will run it back on November 13th.