Holly Holm Didn’t See Any Grand Conspiracy in Action when she got the call that she would face two-time Olympic judo gold medalist Kayla Harrison, in his next fight at UFC 300.
Of course, it’s impossible to forget that Holm became a UFC champion after knocking out Olympic judo bronze medalist Ronda Rousey in 2015. Rousey counted Harrison as a teammate and even a roommate at a time when they were both pursuing their Olympic dreams.
Now Harrison is looking to follow in Rousey’s footsteps in the UFC in hopes of winning a title in the near future. but to get closer to that goal, he first has to get past Holm. Despite having nearly identical backgrounds, Holm doesn’t see Harrison through the same lens that he saw Rousey when they met just over eight years ago.
«In terms of their experience as judo champions, they have different stances, different sizes, different styles. There are some similarities but they are also two very different fighters.
“Even when they reached the ground, Kayla Harrison had her ground and pound and Ronda always had her judo.
If there’s one area that Harrison mirrors with Rousey, at least on the surface, it’s that they both generally preferred a ground battle to a stand-up fight. That changed for Rousey after she scored a pair of devastating knockouts on the feet, but Harrison has never shied away from her desire to drag an opponent to the canvas and pummel them with her fists.
On the feet, Harrison has shown marked improvements over the years, but still often relies on his wrestling game to get wins. When Rousey struggled to take down Holm, the International Boxing Hall of Famer made her pay, especially with the head kick that ended her undefeated streak in the UFC.
Holm doesn’t predict the same thing will happen to Harrison because has to wait for the fighter trained by the American Top Team to be ready for anything, even if you are not as competent in some areas.
«She is going to arrive with her best blow. I come from striking and have evolved into a mixed martial artist. She came from judo, that kind of background, and she evolved into a mixed martial artist. I definitely think he’s improved at his stand-up. It’s not something she started with, just like I didn’t start wrestling or grappling or anything like that..
«I think she’s had a good amount of time in her mixed martial arts career, being more complete than me, so I think that’s what makes this fight interesting.
2024-04-10 14:29:54
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