UFC Orlando Highlights: Stephen Thompson TKO’s injured Kevin Holland

Adam Miller

On Saturday night at UFC Orlando, fan favorite Kevin Holland made his fourth trip to the Octagon this year.

Holland competed against Stephen Wonderboy Thompson. Holland retired prior to this bout-  faced with back to back losses in which he was outwrestled.

Holland has suffered a brutal defeat at the hands of the unbeatable Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279.

On the other hand, Thompson was looking to get one back in the win column after losing four of his past six, including consecutive losses to Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad.

Kevin Holland started pursuing his opponent right away, ratcheting up the tempo. In the first round, Thompson delivered several well-placed blows. However, Holland seemed to take them all in stride. This clearly demonstrated the disparity in strength between the two competitors.

The opening round’s halfway mark was reached when Holland rocked Thompson with a powerful right hand. Holland approached Thompson for the finish but withdrew as soon as Thompson recovered his composure.

Thompson admitted after the match he had no recollection of the event and wasn’t even sure which round Holland rocked him in.

More drama ensued in the second round as Thompson cranked up the heat by repeatedly closing in on Holland and pummeling him with blows. As Holland started to slow down in the third, that pattern persisted. In the fourth, Thompson unleashed a flurry of kicks, obviously weakening Holland with straight blows. In the fourth, Holland was unable to generate any significant offence due to a broken hand.

Kevin Holland and his corner decided to call it after a hectic fourth round due to a hurt hand as they returned to their corners.

At 5:00 in Round 4, Stephen Thompson defeated Kevin Holland via technical knockout.

Holland’s hand had ballooned up in size under the glove and Thompson was left mouth agape when he saw it during the festivities in the cage afterwards.