With the unfortunate news of Darren Till suffering a collarbone injury in training, Marvin Vettori was in need of an opponent – but it didn’t take long for Kevin Holland to sign on the dotted line and save the UFC Vegas 23’s main event.
Sure, Darren Till vs. Marvin Vettori would have been an entertaining main event with all the back-and-forth drama that created bad blood on social media between the two, but Vettori vs. Holland still promised to be an entertaining fight.
Kevin Holland was looking to bounce back after his recent decision loss against Derek Brunson this past March by taking a fight with Vettori on short notice. It was a dangerous return fight on short notice, but to Kevin Holland, a fight is a fight, and he wanted to remind the world that the mantra “anytime, anywhere” is what he is all about.
Marvin Vettori wanted that big name like Darren Till to advance to title contention, but a fight with Kevin Holland still could advance him in the middleweight rankings – something he has been very vocal about in the past. More important than his opponent, believed Vettori, was his performance.
He put on an impressive one Saturday. The story of the fight was the takedowns of Marvin Vettori. Vettori held Holland against the cage, generating some nice ground and pound. Whenever Holland tried to gain any offense, Marvin Vettori took the fight to the ground and implemented some more strategic ground and pound on route to a unanimous decision victory. In the process, setting a middleweight record for takedowns.
PROS GIVE THEIR TAKE
Check out how the pros reacted to the UFC Vegas 23 main event!
Vettori needs to get this fight down early this round to chip away with some damage against Holland. KH is a tough out for anyone in that division because of his length. It allows him to be creative and harder to hit. #UFCVegas23
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) April 10, 2021
UFC be like . “Oh y’all both wanna wrestle people, ok you & Derek gonna be wrestling each other” 😂😂😂. #UFCVegas23
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) April 10, 2021
I feel like Marvin Vettori owes me money for the blueprint! #UFCVegas23
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) April 10, 2021
Congrats brother @MarvinVettori #UFConABC2
— GIGA CHIKADZE (@giga_chikadze) April 10, 2021
Man dawg never heard of a cross face before hmm? 🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️🤦🏿♂️
— Jamahal “Sweet Dreams” Hill (@JamahalH) April 10, 2021
Saw that fight going that way. The Italian dream stays alive #UFCVegas23
— Johnny Muñoz (@KidKvenbo) April 10, 2021
I still wanna see till vs vetorri that wouldve been fire
— Belal Muhammad (@bullyb170) April 10, 2021
There was absolutely nothing done in that corner for Holland to reduce that swelling. Not very good corner work here #UFCVegas23 #UFConABC2
— KAMARU USMAN (@USMAN84kg) April 10, 2021
I only counted like 3 times 🤷♂️ #cheers 🍻 https://t.co/wh5VJfnovN
— Vince Morales (@vandetta135) April 10, 2021
The game ain’t based on sympathy #mma
— JIMI MANUWA (@POSTERBOYJM) April 10, 2021
Big Mouth needs some takedown defense
— Funky (@Benaskren) April 10, 2021
