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No. Kevin Holland did not suffer an eye injury at UFC Vegas 23. The MMA community has lately been rife with speculation regarding Holland potentially having suffered an eye injury in his recent fight against Marvin Vettori. Kevin Holland faced the Italian fighter in a five-round Middleweight bout that headlined UFC Vegas 23.
The fight witnessed Kevin Holland receive a significant amount of damage courtesy of Marvin Vettori’s ground strikes.
Vettori secured takedowns, maintained top control, and consistently landed ground strikes for the better part of their fight.
The strikes caused a noticeable swelling above Kevin Holland’s left eye, which led certain sections of the MMA world to question whether he had suffered an injury to the eye.
UFC Vegas 23 medical suspensions
UFC Vegas 23 transpired at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, under the purview of the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC). As reported by mixedmartialarts.com, the list of medical suspensions handed down by the NSAC after UFC Vegas 23 is as follows –
1. Marvin Vettori: Suspended until May 2nd, no contact until April 25th (left eyebrow cut).
2. Kevin Holland: Suspended until May 2nd, no contact until April 25th (left eyebrow cut).
3. Arnold Allen: Must receive clearance from orthopedic doctor on a positive result from X-ray on the left hand or no contest until October 8th. Minimum suspension no contest until May 11th, no contact until May 2nd.
4. Sodiq Yusuff: Suspended until May 2nd, no contact until April 25th.
5. Julian Marquez: Must receive clearance from orthopedic doctor on a positive result from X-ray on the right hand or no contest until October 8th.
6. Sam Alvey: Suspended until May 11th, no contact until May 2nd.
7. Mackenzie Dern: Must receive clearance from orthopedic doctor on a positive result from X-ray on a right thumb or no contest until October 8th.
8. Mike Perry: Suspended until May 26th, no contact until May 11th.
9. Jim Miller: Must receive clearance from orthopedic doctor on a positive result from X-ray on the left foot or no contest until October 8th. Minimum suspension no contest until May 11th, no contact until May 2nd.
10. Scott Holtzman: Suspended until May 26th, no contact until May 11th.
11. John Makdessi: Must receive clearance from OMF (oral and maxillofacial) doctor for subtle non-displaced fracture of the right zygomatic arch and from the orthopedic doctor for right foot displaced fracture second metatarsal or no contest until October 8th. Minimum suspension no contest until May 26th, no contact until May 11th.
12. Ignacio Bahamodes: Must receive clearance from ENT (ear, nose, and throat) on a positive result from X-ray on the nose and from an orthopedic doctor on a positive result from X-ray on the left hand or no contest until October 8th. Minimum suspension no contest until May 26th, no contact until May 11th.
13. Yorgan De Castro: Suspended until May 26th, no contact until May 11th.
14. Jordan Griffin: Suspended until May 2nd, no contact until April 25th.
15. William Knight: Suspended until May 2nd, no contact until April 25th.
16. Sasha Palatnikov: Suspended until May 2nd, no contact until April 25th.
Kevin Holland has vowed to return to his winning ways
The UFC Vegas 23 main event matchup between Kevin Holland and Vettori ended with the latter winning via unanimous decision. The fight was relatively one-sided, as indicated by the judges’ scorecards, with all three scoring it 50-44 in favor of Vettori.
Nevertheless, the vast majority of MMA fans and experts alike commended Kevin Holland for his willingness to accept a short-notice fight against a top-tier middleweight like Marvin Vettori. In the aftermath of his loss, 'Trailblazer' suggested that he would be working on his wrestling and overall grappling skills.
Kevin Holland clarified that it would be primarily to help him avoid being taken down. He has also emphasized that there will not be any changes made to his fighting style.
Holland aims to shore up his takedown defense, keep the fight standing, and knock his opponents out using his striking skills and vaunted KO power.
As we had previously reported, Kevin Holland opined that he could work with MMA legend Daniel Cormier at the world-renowned AKA (American Kickboxing Academy) and improve his wrestling skill-set.
Holland even teased going to Dagestan to train with Cormier's teammate and legendary wrestler, former UFC Lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
"Can’t say too much changes. We’ll see what it is. You know, I just honestly don’t know. Go and spend some time with DC (Daniel Cormier) for sure, work on some of that wrestling things. Go work on wrestling of course, gotta stop some of these takedowns.”
“Other than that, same old same. I am not gonna change the fighter I am and try and become a wrestler just cause all these guys wanna wrestle. I like to strike, I like to bang, I will just do a better job at keeping the fight up on its feet and deliver some more knockouts to the people. That way they will be back on the bandwagon sooner or later," said Kevin Holland.
Which fighter would you like to see Kevin Holland face next? Sound off in the comments.
