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Kevin Holland has not given up on the prospect of fighting Khamzat Chimaev. Holland has been calling out Khamzat for a fight, and has been critical of the Swede for ducking him.
Kevin Holland recently responded to a tweet where it was mentioned that his fight against Chimev is currently not on the horizon.
“Keyword- at the moment. But let me call down to the hotel front desk and confirm that his crew is still taking the talk but not actually walking the walk and showing up month after month like me.” stated Holland.
Holland was alluding to Chimaev backing out of his fight with Leon Edwards on two occasions now. Chimaev was initially removed from his bout against Edwards at UFC Vegas 17 after testing positive for COVID-19. The fight was rescheduled for January 20th at UFC Fight Night 185. However, Chimaev pulled out of the fight again citing recovery from COVID-19. The bout was then cancelled and a new date is being looked at to book the fight again.
Khamzat Chimaev has talked about frequenting the octagon, but his two cancelled bouts seem to have irked Kevin Holland. Holland on the other hand, contracted the virus himself, but still managed to have five fights in 2020.
While Chimaev is listed as a top 15 fighter in the UFC welterweight rankings, he has fought at middleweight as well. Therefore, a Khamzat Chimaev vs. Kevin Holland fight in 2021 may not be out of the realm of possibility.
Kevin Hollands’s stellar 2020
Kevin Holland will be taking on Derek Brunson at UFC Fight Night 188 on March 20th, 2021. Holland will be hoping that the year 2021 will be a repeat of a stellar 2021.
Holland made the walk to the octagon five times in 2021. He ended up with his hand raised on all five occasions. The sensational 2020 for Holland has put him in the elite company of fighters with five wins in a calendar year.
He has won various awards for Breakout Star of the Year for 2020 and rightly so. His last win saw him knocking out BJJ legend Jacare Souza while on his back. That performance earned him a nomination for the UFC’s KO of the year award.
Holland had then called out Khamzat Chimaev for a fight at UFC Vegas 17, the last card of 2020. His performances ensured that he broke into the top ten of the UFC middleweight rankings.
If 2021 is anything like 2020 for Kevin Holland, his stock will skyrocket and he will be in the conversation for the 185-pound gold.
