Former UFC bantamweight champion Holly Holm appears to be flirting with a potential return to boxing.
Holm hasn’t competed since October 2020, when she earned a dominant win over Irene Aldana. Before that, she had earned a decision win over Raquel Pennington at UFC 246.
Holm was supposed to face Norma Dumont in a featherweight bout last year but had to withdraw after suffering a knee injury in training. She was replaced on just days’ notice by Aspen Ladd, who would go on to lose to Dumont decisively.
Despite being right in the thick of things in the UFC title picture at bantamweight and featherweight, Holm isn’t ruling out a return to her roots in the boxing ring. During a recent interview with FightHype.com, she described her possible motivation for returning to the ‘sweet science.’
“I miss boxing,” Holm said. “it’s always going to be a part of my heart and so you never know. You know maybe I will go back and a lot of these people are going also. A lot of fighters are trying to go back and forth and nobody is doing it successfully.
“Not a lot of people can do it successfully but I can. I know I can, I know I can go back to boxing and still be a champion.” (h/t EssentiallySports)
Holly Holm Earned Multiple World Titles In Boxing
Before making the full-time transition to MMA, Holm had been regarded as arguably the top female boxer in the world. She successfully defended her belts a total of 16 times in three different weight classes.
After retaining her IBA and WBF light-welterweight titles, Holm went on a run to the UFC bantamweight belt. She would go on to eventually pull off one of the greatest upsets in UFC history over Ronda Rousey at UFC 193.
Holm has also hinted at a potential matchup with the newly-crowned bantamweight champion Julianna Peña.
It’s unclear when Holm will eventually return to the Octagon, but it appears that all options are on the table for her combat sports career. She still seems intent on challenging for the UFC title once again.
How do you think Holly Holm would fare against some of the top female boxers today?
