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It’s never smart to underestimate someone – especially when they’re a professionally trained mixed martial artist. Unfortunately, that’s what the entire world did a few years back when Holly Holm did the unthinkable and defeated Ronda Rousey to become the new UFC women's bantamweight champion.
Over time many people grew to love Holly as her star power rose to new levels, but the real test of dedication came when she was staring down the barrel at defeat.
Three consecutive losses, which included losing her aforementioned title, left Holm and many in a state of shock. The 36-year-old had fallen off of the mountaintop so quickly that few believed she’d reach the summit once again, and yet after just one return to winning ways, she has the chance to make history once again.
"I feel like I can perform at either 135 or 145 [lbs]. I don't have any stress as far as the weight goes, and I get to focus on my training. It’s been nice to not have that stress, because it’s just such a big fight."
Holm is set to take on the seemingly unstoppable Cris Cyborg this Saturday at UFC 219 in Las Vegas, and luckily, we were given the chance to speak with Holly prior to the event through the UFC's official conference call.
The Albuquerque native was likely sick and tired of hearing the same old questions being thrown at her week in and week out, and because of that, we decided to delve into a few unorthodox topics in order to see where her mind was at prior to one of the biggest fights of her life.
The always calm Holm answered with elegance and poise, as she always does, which continues to build her persona as the underdog heading into this fight. That’s probably not what she’s aiming for, nor does she probably care all too much about it, but that’s certainly the situation we find ourselves in just days before the encounter.
"I wanna win the fight that I have in front of me. In a small way I like to feel like each fight is my last fight, because you're never really promised anything else. I wanna make the most of this fight, and it is it's own journey. Any loss I have in my past I would love to be able to avenge, but that's not where my thoughts are at."
Holm should be looked upon as an inspirational figure by all those who want to break their way into this sport because she's proven that it truly does not matter whether or not you have the people's backing going into a big-time contest.
Sure she’s always had fans, but did people think she could beat Ronda? No. Do people think she can beat Cyborg? Kind of, but not really. This woman is a different kind of animal in more ways than one and while a fourth professional loss is certainly a possibility this weekend, you just know that she's going to do everything in her power to walk out as the first-ever female two-weight UFC champion.
