MMAmania.com resident fighter analyst -- and aspiring professional fighter -- Andrew Richardson breaks down the mixed martial arts (MMA) game of UFC on FOX 20’s Holly Holm, who will look to earn a title shot this Saturday (July 23, 2016) inside United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) strap-hanger, Holly Holm, is set to throw down with kickboxing and Muay Thai champion, Valentina Shevchenko, this Saturday (July 23, 2016) at UFC on FOX 20 inside United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
After a pair of uninspiring victories, Holm found herself in the Octagon with Ronda Rousey, who was at the height of her powers and seemed unstoppable. However, Holm saw through the hype, executed a masterful game plan crafted by camp Jackson-Winkeljohn, and put a cherry on top by slamming her shin into Rousey’s jaw.
Despite seeming to inherit Rousey’s unstoppable reputation — Holm was a pretty wide favorite in her first title defense — Holm slipped up late in the fight and found herself being woken up without a belt instead. Now, Holm will look to move past a dangerous opponent and get back into the title picture.
Let’s take a closer look at her skill set.
Striking
Holm is one of the most talented and disciplined strikers in the sport. A former boxing world champion with kickboxing experience, it’s no real surprise Holm has been so effective thus far in his career.
Holm’s overall approach to striking isn’t particularly complex. She’s a reasonably tall and large fighter for her division, so she likes to work from the outside. Utilizing her long range, Holm stabs at her opponent and scores points with long range kicks and punches.
In some cases, the fight never really evolves past that. In Holm’s victory over Marion Reneau, for example, Holm never had to really kick it into second gear. She simply picked apart her opponent and kept her in a defensive shell, easily winning the fight.
On the other hand, Holm’s opponent can seek to close the distance. This is where Holm’s counter game comes into play, as she’s very skilled at suddenly planting her feet, landing blows, and exiting to her lateral movement before her opponent can capitalize.
If her opponent chases sloppily, it can be devastating.
More to the actual details, Holm’s money punch is certainly her left cross. The New Mexico native is versatile with the strike: using it as a lead, mixing in straight body shots, and setting up her kicks with the cross.
Additionally, Holm will often counter with her left hand. Circling away from her opponent, Holm will make her foe miss and then capitalize with a crisp cross. This was seen repeatedly against Rousey, as the Judoka sprinted face-first into multiple crosses and counter elbows (GIF).
Like her cross, Holm’s right hook is an important punch that serves multiple purposes, from counters to lead. However, it’s most effective use is as a setup for kicks.
Holm's left round kick is the center of her kickboxing attack, the most powerful and important weapon in her arsenal. Just about every Southpaw that's ever fought recognizes the value of left kick, as it's one of the more simple power strikes to land on an opponent in the Orthodox stance.
It's important to note that Holm sets up her left kick -- usually to either the body or head -- rather well. The setups are usually pretty simple, but Holm's distance and timing make them effective. For example, one of her most common kick combinations is the cross-kick, in which the initial cross either moves her opponent's defense out of position or merely serves as a distraction prior to the real blow.
In addition, Holm commonly uses the right hook -- or merely slaps her opponents' lead hand down -- to encourage them to slip into the kick (GIF).
Alternatively, Holm will look to kick on the counter. As her opponent reaches for her with a punch, Holm will slip a kick underneath her arm into the exposed ribs. When the body is wide open and stretched out, it's particularly susceptible to being kick (GIF).
The Rousey fight was really a demonstration of Holm’s movement and counter punching. For high-level Southpaws, getting a dominant angle, forcing the opponent to turn, and then hitting her while she turns to face is a major part of the game. Holm did that expertly, eventually causing Rousey to turn directly into a high kick (GIF).
Besides the round kick, Holm has some other dangerous kicking techniques. For example, she uses the lead leg side kick to great effect. If her punching combination come up short, Holm can instead push her opponent backwards with the side kick.
Furthermore, Holm works to build off her side kick with other lead leg attacks. For example, Holm has been looking for the hook kick(GIF).
Lastly, Holm uses the oblique kick very well. Against opponents looking to close the distance aggressively and moving on a straight line, the oblique kick will completely stall their approach, making it a valuable weapon for "The Preacher’s Daughter."
Since Holm’s game relies on her ability to maintain distance, being able to escape after throwing counters is very important. To that end, Holm always ends her combinations with a proper exit, be it head movement or clinching. Both escapes were in full use opposite Rousey, who swung over Holm’s head repeatedly and was not able to capitalize when Holm chose to briefly initiate the clinch.
Wrestling
Though she ultimately lost her first career bout to a wrestler, Holm’s defensive wrestling has actually been pretty outstanding. On the whole, her wrestling is greatly benefited from his masterful control of distance.
On the rare occasion that Holm has pursued the takedown, she’s used the increasingly common counter running double leg that is popular among distance strikers. Since she’s thought of as a striker, it’s not particularly difficult for her to change levels and drive her opponent to the mat.
It may not work consistently as her opponent grows more aware of the threat, but it’s a solid tactic that discourage forward pressure and score some points. Hell, it even worked on "Rowdy" Rousey.
Defensively, there’s an obvious benefit to working from the edge of the kicking range. If Holm’s opponent shoots without setup, it’s simply not going to happen. In order to have a chance to finish a shot, her opponent has to close the distance without getting countered, which is a tremendously difficult task on its own.
Additionally, Holm is one of the bigger and stronger women in her division. Against Rousey, she showed that she possessed the kind of patient clinch defense necessary to negate Rousey’s clinch throws. Keeping her hips low and pushing away at Rousey’s own hips, Holm didn’t simply hand her opponent takedowns by rushing in any one direction.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Holm’s jiu-jitsu has really only been tested twice. In her title fight with Rousey, her defense held up, and she was able to win the title because of it. In her last fight, however, Holm tried to rush back to her feet, and it cost her the title.
A couple minutes into the first round of her bout with Rousey, Holm’s opponent managed to secure a clinch in the center of the Octagon. From there, the Judoka looked for her usual head-and-arm throw. While Holm didn’t let her really complete the throw, Rousey was able to drag them both to the mat and overhooked her opponent’s arm.
From there, Rousey threw her leg over and tried to transition into the armbar. However, Holm prevented her from doing this with some important little details. First and foremost, Holm kept her head tucked and did not allow Rousey to hook her face with the leg. Furthermore, Holm kept her weight back and allowed Rousey to slowly slide off the top position, eventually loosening the hold enough that Holm could yank away and return to her feet.
Last time out, Holm failed to show that same patience. Unfortunately for "The Preacher’s Daughter," her method of standing up involved turning her back and trying stand up quickly. That can be an effective method of escape, but it’s also quite risky and can give up the rear naked choke.
Conclusion
Holm is 34 years old and has already had a rather long combat sports career. There's no telling how much time she has left in her prime, so it’s important for her to capitalize on these big fights now. If Holm is victorious here, she's primed for a title shot with Amanda Nunes next, and there's always the chance that Rousey returns for her rematch.
*****
Andrew Richardson, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt, is an undefeated amateur fighter who trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, California. In addition to learning alongside world-class talent, Andrew has scouted opponents and developed winning strategies for several of the sport's most elite fighters.