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Holly Holm may be the greatest salesperson in the history of mixed martial arts.
In one night, with one kick, Holm shocked the world, proving how crucial it is to tune in to every fight, no matter the odds. She defied all convention by knocking out Ronda Rousey, cementing the greatest upset in MMA history, and now she’s trying to do it again.
Set to take on women’s champ Amanda Nunes in the co-main event of the UFC 239 Pay Per View main card on ESPN+, Holm, who returns to bantamweight for the first time in two years, is once again the betting underdog. Once again, she’s facing a fighter many consider the greatest of all time, and all she’s thinking about it proving that her legendary win over Rousey was no fluke.
“I know I’m up against somebody that nobody really feels that I can do it, and I’m the underdog and all that, but that’s okay. I’m okay with it. I’m just accepting it and embracing it,” explains Holm. “That was three years ago. I’m a totally different person than I was. I have a totally different fight in front of me against Amanda and I’m training hard. I know I put a lot of work into it and I just need to make it happen.”
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Acceptance is a key component for Holm, who has struggled since her rise to overnight international sensation after knocking Rousey out in 2015.
Fighting on the mega-selling UFC 196 pay per view card headlined by Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz’ first fight, Holm lost her belt without a single title defense. And much like Rousey’s star and sales power magnified Holm’s title win, McGregor’s popularity greatly increased the visibility of Holm’s high-profile loss to Miesha Tate.
The struggles continued for another year, as Holm was outpointed by current UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko and dropped a very questionable and contentious decision to Germaine de Randamie in the inaugural UFC women’s featherweight title fight.
Championship bouts have actually been a rather sore spot for Holm, despite the win over Rousey. In addition to the losses to Tate and de Randamie, she lost a second crack at the featherweight belt to Cris “Cyborg” Justino in late 2017. At the time, it was considered the closest any woman had fought “Cyborg” in a decade. That was until Nunes completely starched her last December.
“I don’t like to live in the past. Every past experience helps to prepare you for future experiences,” offers Holm. “I just think about what I know at 37 that I didn’t know at 27, and I’m talking about everything in life, not just fighting.”
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The resolve in Holm’s comments is quite important considering her upcoming task against Nunes at UFC 239. While both women own victories over Rousey, Nunes not only beat Tate and “Cyborg,” but she finished them both, convincingly. Nunes also owns a pair of victories over Shevchenko, along with a finish over de Randamie. That’s a lot of data to compile, and the MMA math doesn’t look particularly good for Holm and her +285 betting line.
But people who follow the UFC, mixed martial arts, and combat sports understand that the intangibles play a major role in any fight. The intangibles helped Roberto Duran beat “Sugar” Ray Leonard. The intangibles guided James “Buster” Douglas to the biggest upset in sports history when he knocked out Mike Tyson. The intangibles entered the ring when Andy Ruiz destroyed Anthony Joshua. And the intangibles certainly graced the Octagon in November 2015, when Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm leveled Ronday Rousey with a perfect head kick.
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Nearly finished with her training camp at Albuquerque’s Jackson-Wink MMA, Holm has been preparing alongside UFC 239 main eventer Jon Jones. The two have been gearing up for this Pay Per View card on ESPN+ side by side to bring a winning attitude to the gym, and the environment has been extremely beneficial in Holm’s quest to regain the bantamweight title.
“The flow in the gym, the vibe in the gym has been amazing, and it’s kind of contagious,” states Holm. “Even fighters that are not in fight camp right now are there because they want to be there because it has been it’s been a great vibe — positive spirits. People are working hard and working together and it’s been great. It’s great vibes from everyone.”
It’s tough to pinpoint the vibes, exactly. Vibes are feelings. They’re gut reactions. They’re intuitions. And, to a certain extent, they’re intangibles. And it’s intangibles that keep combat sports interesting and turn casual fans into rabid consumers of action, much like they did when Holm knocked out Rousey.
Holly Holm knows this, and she’s hoping to sell the world on a second historic upset, this time on the UFC 239 Pay Per View main card on ESPN+.
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