Latest news with #KevinHolland
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Daniel Rodriguez addresses Kevin Holland's greasing allegations
Daniel Rodriguez is next after his back-and-forth victory against Kevin Holland. He speaks on the story behind his tattoos, not getting a bonus, his three-fight win streak, and more.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC 318 takeaways: Max Holloway's chances vs. Ilia Topuria, Dustin Poirier's fitting exit
What mattered most at UFC 318 on Saturday from Smoothie King Center in New Orleans? Here are a few post-fight musings … 4) A sensational set of prelims The finishes came hot and heavy early in UFC's return to New Orleans after more than 10 years, with the first six bouts on the card ending in a knockout or submission. It was a welcome sign after some dreadful prelim lineups in recent months, and it was all favorites who held serve. Jimmy Crute getting his first victory in nearly five years was one of the top moments, as was the vicious first-round knockout of debuting welterweight prospect Islam Dulatov. The middleweight bout between Brendan Allen and Marvin Vettori was perhaps the most meaningful matchup on the preliminary-card lineup, with Allen getting the victory by unanimous decision in a very important moment in his career after consecutive losses. Credit to both men, however, because they delivered a fight worthy of their grudge, and the UFC brass agreed with each getting $50,000 for Fight of the Night. 3) Daniel Rodriguez and Kevin Holland deliver After three years of waiting to share the cage, Daniel Rodriguez and Kevin Holland made up for all that lost time with a welterweight classic that saw "D-Rod" emerge victorious by unanimous decision. It was an awesome fight, and one that extended Rodriguez's momentum into a three-fight winning streak, while Holland fell to 2-2 on the year, and was knocked down for the first time in his 28-fight UFC career. Both guys should get credit for what they produced in the cage, and probably should've been the rightful winners of Fight of the Night. It didn't happen, but the 15-minute war was an example of why both Rodriguez and Holland should be appointment viewing any time they enter the octagon. 2) Dustin Poirier a winner despite his defeat Dustin Poirier, of course, would've liked for his retirement fight to end in a winning manner with his hand being raised in front of a passionate crowd of fans, but fairy tale endings rarely exist in MMA. He nearly had that moment when he badly hurt and knocked down Holloway in the second round, but could not seal the deal, then fell short on the scorecards. Realistically, though, Poirier not winning the fight will be just a footnote in his retirement story. The real thing he should attach himself to is the treatment he received from the UFC, the fans and his fellow fighters both before and after the fight, which is a reflection of the widespread admiration he's earned for himself. It might be cliche at this point, but Poirier is the definition of a true fighter. His incentives for getting into this sport were not to get social media clout or be viewed as a cool, tough guy. His passion for fist fighting was his path out of a troubled youth, and he turned it into a sustainable career, and now, ultimately one that has given him financial freedom for life and generational wealth on top of it. That's the real win for Poirier after UFC 318, and he rightfully left the cage, his post-fight interviews and the arena with his head held high, knowing that he committed every part of his being to maximizing his time. He will still be around the sport as a voice, but from every explanation he gave about why he was doing this now, there will be no luring him back, and everyone should be happy he left on his terms. 1) What is lightweight Max Holloway capable of? Max Holloway played his role as the opposing force to Poirier's retirement fight pretty much perfectly from beginning to end. He handled the entire situation with class and dignity, and although the crowd obliged his call to be booed on multiple instances, not one of those boos was genuine. How could they be, really? Holloway is a class act and knows what he was going up against. He never tried to take away from Poirier's moment, even when the spotlight was all on himself after getting his hand raised to successfully defend the BMF title. The question for Holloway now, however, is what this win truly tells us about him at this stage of his career. On the positive end, the former featherweight champion has looked excellent overall in his past two appearances at lightweight against Poirier and Justin Gaethje. His speed is there, and as we've seen in him dropping both men, the power is present, too. That will only become a bigger threat as time goes on and he finds increased comfort at this weight class, but on the flip side, there's going to be persistent questions about whether his record amount of significant strikes absorbed in UFC competition will eventually catch up. There's already signs, because after going on the longest streak in company history without being knocked down, Holloway has found himself dropped and touching the mat at some point in his past three contests. The knockdown he never got back up from came against Ilia Topuria in October, as "El Matador" became the first to knock out Holloway. It's obvious that doesn't sit well with him, and Holloway is eager to get his chance at a rematch. Is there a ton of reason to think it would go any differently? Both men would be bigger and stronger than the previous encounter, and before he was stopped, a strong argument can be made that Holloway was finding more success against Topuria than anyone else on his recent run. Topuria has been a force of nature inside that octagon during his undefeated rise to winning titles in two divisions. He is not someone you pick against at this point in time, and still has many challengers ahead. Holloway might not get that rematch now or next, but it's not out of the realm of possibility. Would he be favored to defeat Topuria in a rematch? Certainly not. But Holloway is one of the greatest to ever do it, and anyone pretending someone of his skill, experience and motivation isn't capable of winning if he shows up in form on the right night? This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 318 takeaways: Can Max Holloway beat Ilia Topuria in rematch?
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC 318: Daniel Rodriguez post-fight interview
UFC 318 winner Daniel Rodriguez spoke to MMA Junkie and reporters post-fight after his unanimous decision victory over Kevin Holland in New Orleans.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
UFC 318 results: Daniel Rodriguez vs. Kevin Holland goes totally off the rails
It was a fight UFC matchmakers had tried to make multiple times prior and when it finally came to fruition, it proved worth the wait. Daniel Rodriguez and Kevin Holland came to blows Saturday at UFC 318 and those in attendance at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans were treated to an all-time-wild brawl. When the dust settled, Rodriguez (20-5 MMA, 10-4 UFC) was named winner by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28). As the fight progressed, the craziness increased. Rodriguez had a strong first round, but peaked in Round 2 when he froze and dropped Holland (28-14 MMA, 15-11 UFC) with a combination. Holland somehow survived and scored a beautifully-timed takedown midway through the round. In Round 3, Holland stunned Rodriguez multiple times. Uppercuts were his biggest weapons, which totally flashed Rodriguez twice. Although the referee he was close to intervening, he did not. Rodriguez was allowed to fight on and for good reason. He scored a takedown on Holland and entered mount. Rodriguez, 38, has won three fights in a row. He entered UFC 318 off back-to-back wins over Alex Morono and Santiago Ponzinibbio. Holland, 32, has been the UFC's most active fighters in 2025. However, he may need a little time off due to the laceration he suffered near his right eye. Holland has a two-fight winning streak snapped and moves to 2-2 in the calendar year. Up-to-the-minute UFC 318 results include: Daniel Rodriguez def. Kevin Holland via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Patricio Freire def. Dan Ige via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Michael Johnson def. Daniel Zellhuber via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Vinicius Oliveira def. Kyler Phillips via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Brendan Allen def. Marvin Vettori via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) Nikolay Veretennikov def. Franciso Prado via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28) Ateba Gautier def. Robert Valentin via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:10 Islam Dulatov def. Adam Fugitt via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 4:06 Jimmy Crute def. Marcin Prachnio via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 4:42 Ryan Spann def. Lukasz Brzeski via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 2:47 Brunno Ferreira def. Jackson McVey via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 3:35 Carli Judice def. Nicolle Caliari via TKO (knee, punches) – Round 3, 1:30 This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 318 results: Daniel Rodriguez vs. Kevin Holland goes totally off the rails
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez prediction, pick, start time for UFC 318
Kevin Holland and Daniel Rodriguez meet Saturday on the main card of UFC 318 at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom. Last event: 4-2 UFC main cards, 2025: 68-50-1 Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 preview Holland (28-13 MMA, 15-10 UFC) is building serious momentum as he continues his hyper-active 2025 campaign. After starting the year with a first-round submission loss to Reinier de Ridder in January, "Trailblazer" bounced back with a unanimous decision win over Gunnar Nelson in March, followed by a second-round submission of Vicente Luque last month at UFC 316. ... Rodriguez (19-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) also enters on the heels of back-to-back wins. Recently on a rough skid of three straight losses, "D-Rod" has rebounded with a split decision win over Alex Morono last October, followed by a third-round finish of Santiago Ponzinibbio in May. Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 expert pick, prediction Filling out the main card is a welterweight fight between Kevin Holland and Daniel Rodriguez. I know these two have been booked to fight one another at multiple points in their career, but this booking kind of feels like a waste for the Holland side of things, if I'm being honest. Although I got a lot of respect for the gameness of Rodriguez, I believe that the Los Angeleno has been on a noticeable decline in recent years, seemingly losing some speed and smoothness to his game. Add in the fact that Holland traditionally does well opposite southpaws (officially standing at 10-3-1 opposite UFC-level lefties), and I suspect that the stage is set for "Trailblazer" to land one of his patented right hands down the pike given the open-stance dynamic at play. The pick is Holland by knockout in Round 1. Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 odds The oddsmakers and the public heavily favor the younger fighter, listing Holland -600 and Rodriguez +425 via FanDuel. Kevin Holland vs. Daniel Rodriguez UFC 318 start time, how to watch Holland and Rodriguez are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 11:10 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts live on ESPN and ESPN+.
