Clay Guida continued to turn back the clock, rallying after dropping the first round to defeat Scott Holtzman at UFC Orlando.
In what was likely to be his retirement fight, 39-year-old lightweight Scott Holtzman threw down with the man whose career was seemingly never-ending, Clay Guida, at UFC Orlando on Saturday.
“Hot Sauce” Holtzman had lost two straight, and was closing out a career that had brought him to the confines of the UFC in 2015. Guida, meanwhile, had been trading wins and losses across his last four bouts.
Clay Guida started out in his usual fashion, bobbing back and forth while whipping leg kicks. Scott Holtzman controlled the Octagon, but seemed to be limited in what he could do with his attacks. Holtzman was able to crack Guida at the end of the round, but The Carpenter landed a big shot as well.
Guida started the second round with a takedown, but it did not last long as Holtzman got up and popped Guida with an elbow. Holtzman was letting his strikes fly early in the second round, landing with relative ease, but Guida chained together a pair of hooks into a takedown. Holtzman popped out and missed a knee narrowly. Guida pushed the pace and got Holtzman against the fence. The veteran lifted his opponent up and slammed him to the mat. The gas tank was emptying for Guida, though, as Holtzman was finding more and more success on the feet as the round went on, stuffing a pair of takedowns as well. With 30 seconds left in the round, Guida pushed Holtzman against the cage and tacked on one more brief takedown.
Holtzman started the final round by piecing Guida up on the feet followed by a big sprawl of a takedown. The striking success of Holtzman continued as Guida was putting up little defensive resistance. After eating shots, Guida pushed for a takedown against the cage. After an effort was thwarted by Holtzman, Guida landed a slam for the second time in the contest and was able to hold Holtzman down in side control for 20 seconds. Holtzman got back up, but Guida shot desperately for another takedown and got it on the second effort. A third takedown was achieved by Guida to end the fight on a high note.
Scott Holtzman called it a career after the fight, owning a 7-6 UFC record and a 14-6 MMA record that spanned a decade after a brief professional hockey career.
Clay Guida def. Scott Holtzman by Split Decision (29-28 x2, 28-29)
