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This weekend sees rising UFC Middleweight contender Kevin Holland return to action when he faces Derek Brunson in the main event of UFC Vegas 22.
UFC Vegas 22's Kevin Holland tied a UFC record in 2020 to shoot up the ladder in the Middleweight division
Prior to this, though, nobody had really heard of him. When 2019 came to an end, ‘The Trailblazer’ was a respectable 3-2 in the UFC. His wins had come over John Phillips, Gerald Meerschaert and Alessio Di Chirico, while his losses had come at the hands of Thiago Santos and Brendan Allen.
Outside of Santos, none of those fighters have ever had much of a star presence with the UFC. And tellingly, just two of Holland’s first five UFC fights were televised on the main card of a show.
So how did ‘The Trailblazer’ go from a midcard unknown to one of the fastest rising stars in the UFC? Simply put, Holland fought – a lot.
Kevin Holland went 5-0 in the UFC in 2020
More than any other fighter, Kevin Holland took advantage of the mess that the COVID-19 pandemic made of the UFC’s plans in 2020.
Holland was initially booked on the doomed March 14th card in London. But when the pandemic put paid to that show, ‘The Trailblazer’ found himself on the UFC’s third show of the COVID-19 era, facing journeyman Anthony Hernandez.
Holland won that fight handily, and from there, the ball began to roll. For the want of a better term, he noticed a gap in the market.
With the UFC largely stuck in Las Vegas and international travel all over the place, the UFC needed bodies to fill the constant flow of cards that they were required to provide for ESPN+.
And so Holland stepped up and showed a willingness to fight constantly, often on late notice. A booking with Daniel Rodriguez just two weeks after his fight with Hernandez fell through, but less than three months later, Holland was back. This time he defeated newcomer Joaquin Buckley, picking up his second TKO of 2020 in the process.
Six weeks later, he was back, edging Darren Stewart via split decision. And after another six weeks, Holland picked up his fourth win of 2020, stopping UFC newcomer Charlie Antiveros with a slam.
Holland’s next fight was scrapped when he contracted COVID-19, and many fans expected to see him return in 2021. Somehow though, ‘The Trailblazer’ shrugged off the virus and ended his year in a big way – knocking out ‘Jacare’ Souza to pick up the biggest win of his UFC career.
Whether Holland can continue to climb the UFC’s ladder is anyone’s guess. However, what can’t be taken away from him is the fact that his exploits in 2020 saw him tie the record for the most UFC victories in a calendar year.
But who holds this record alongside Holland?
Roger Huerta went 5-0 in the UFC in 2007
The first man to win five UFC fights in a calendar year was Roger Huerta.
This exciting Lightweight brought an impressive 14-1-1 record into the UFC in 2006 and made a successful debut, defeating Jason Dent at UFC 63.
Huerta opened 2007 with his first TKO win in the UFC, stopping John Halverson in just 19 seconds. And from there, a curious thing happened.
Despite only being in the UFC for five months, the promotion spotted Huerta’s star potential. ‘El Matador’ was an exciting fighter who also possessed model-esque good looks.
He was well-spoken and came with a fascinating and tragic backstory that saw him escape abject poverty with the help of his high school English teacher, who would eventually become his adopted mother.
And so the UFC decided to push Huerta, heavily. Three months after stopping Halverson, ‘El Matador’ was back in the octagon, defeating Leonard Garcia in one of the greatest brawls the UFC had ever seen.
A still shot from the fight was famously used as the cover image of Sports Illustrated’s story on MMA, making Huerta the first-ever UFC fighter to also become a Sports Illustrated cover star.
Two more fights against overmatched opponents – Doug Evans and Alberto Crane – followed, with Huerta stopping both via TKO.
By this point, ‘El Matador’ began to feel a slight backlash to his push from the UFC. His detractors claimed he hadn’t fought a genuine contender, but that would all change in his final fight of 2007.
Huerta faced off with high-ranked Lightweight star Clay Guida. And in one of 2007’s best fights, he pulled off an unbelievable comeback win to choke Guida out in the third round – giving him five UFC wins in a single calendar year.
What happened next?
Huerta failed to put himself in line for a shot at the UFC Lightweight title when he was outpointed by Kenny Florian in his only fight of 2008.
By that point, he’d grown tired of the UFC, feeling he deserved more money, thanks to the level of stardom he’d reached. In early 2009, he announced that he was stepping away from MMA in order to pursue a career in acting.
Huerta did return to the octagon in late 2009, but only to complete his UFC contract in a loss to Gray Maynard.
In the years that have followed, Huerta has gone 4-9 in smaller promotions such as Bellator MMA and ONE FC. However, he still holds his UFC record, albeit alongside two other fighters.
Neil Magny went 5-0 in the UFC in 2014
Huerta’s record stood alone for another seven years until it was equalled by Neil Magny in 2014.
Unlike Huerta, Magny did not receive a big push from the UFC and largely put his five wins in a calendar year together in preliminary bouts.
His first win in 2014 probably saved his UFC career. Magny had gone 1-2 in 2013 and was on the verge of being cut when he outpointed newcomer Gasan Umalatov at UFC 169.
Four months later, he was back, edging out veteran Welterweight Tim Means on the main card of UFC Fight Night 40. Incredibly, it was his last appearance on a UFC main card that year.
Magny went on to defeat Rodrigo de Lima and hot prospects Alex Garcia and William Macario, although his win over Garcia was contentious.
His run couldn’t have been more far removed from Huerta’s if he’d tried.
The TUF 16 veteran flew far beneath the radar, and none of his wins came over ranked opponents, despite the status of Garcia and Macario as highly-touted fighters. Unlike Huerta, though, Magny has gone on to achieve far more UFC success.
His run of wins continued with two in early 2015, but a loss to Demian Maia cut him off shortly after.
Magny was still able to go 4-1 that year, though, as he bounced back with wins over Erick Silva and Kelvin Gastelum. Had he beaten Maia, he’d have put together a scarcely believable 10 UFC wins in two calendar years.
Since then, Magny has won a further seven UFC fights while losing four, taking his overall UFC record to 17-7.
And despite lacking the star qualities of Huerta, ‘The Haitian Sensation’ will probably be remembered far more fondly than ‘El Matador’ in the UFC, thanks to his far longer run with the promotion.
Where does Kevin Holland go from here?
As for Kevin Holland, who tied the record set by Huerta and Magny in 2020, where he goes next is anyone’s guess.
A win over Derek Brunson this weekend could put him in line for a shot at Israel Adesanya's UFC Middleweight title – something that neither Huerta nor Magny were able to achieve.
But even if ‘The Trailblazer’ falls short in his quest for UFC gold, it’s likely that he’ll remain part of the promotion for many years to come.
Kevin Holland appears to have meshed the laid-back company-man style of Magny with the star qualities that Huerta once brought to the octagon.
