Following his loss to Derek Brunson at UFC Vegas 22, Kevin Holland is prepared to make some changes, beginning with doing something he has avoided since entering the UFC: waiting.
Kevin Holland had an incredibly active 2020, competing and winning five fights in the calendar year. The Trailblazer was considered the fighter of the year by some people due to his fight/success rate, and he had earned a reputation for always being available for a good scrap.
Another thing Holland has become very well known for is his incessant talking during fights, hence the nickname “Big Mouth” that was introduced by UFC President Dana White following Holland’s UFC debut. Even though Holland lost to Thiago Santos that night, White conceded that he was a must-see attraction in large part because of the talking Holland did throughout the contest.
Fast forward three years later, and Holland is still talking, but White isn’t smiling or giving out fun nicknames anymore. Instead, he is making unfavorable psychoanalytic determinations about Holland after “Big Mouth” got too much of a vocal workout during his UFC Vegas 22 loss to Brunson.
Going forward, Kevin Holland expressed his motivation to not disappoint his supporters or those whose opinion he values most, including Dana White. So if that means taking a rare break to re-evaluate, then that’s what he intends to do.
“Who knows how long I’ll be sitting on the sidelines,” Holland said in a recent interview with ESPN. “It’s not my fault I’ll be sitting on the sidelines, but it is my fault that I’m sitting on the sidelines. So I’ll go and I’ll work on the things.”
Kevin Holland Set to Consult A Professional
Kevin Holland narrowed the things he will work on down to two, with one concerning the physical and the other addressing the mental.
“For sure for sure working on the wrestling is number one, and figuring out what’s going on mentally when I’m in there and I’m having too good of a time is number two,” Holland said. “I don’t think there’s anything mentally, but if getting it checked out is something they want, getting it checked out is something I’ll do. I’ll do whatever it takes. I’m a businessman.”
Bypassing the diagnoses of Dr. Dana White, the middleweight contender is even willing to speak to an actual professional just to ensure that there are no underlying issues at play with his talking and somewhat nonchalant disposition during fights.
“Yeah, I’ll go talk to a sports psychologist,” Holland confirmed.
What do you expect to see from Kevin Holland the next time he competes?
