The Fighting Foundations Of UFC Champion Holly Holm
The Fighting Foundations Of UFC Champion Holly Holm
Holly Holm pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of mixed martial arts when she knocked out the previously undefeated Ronda Rousey. Holm's illustrious boxing history was the cornerstone of that victory.
By Roy Billington
On Saturday night, Albuquerque, New MexicoÂ’s Holly Holm pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of mixed martial arts when she knocked out the previously undefeated Ronda Rousey. Coming into Saturday nightÂ’s main event, many analysts were keen to talk up RouseyÂ’s judo background, but on the night it was HolmÂ’s striking advantage that would be the telling advantage, HolmÂ’s illustrious boxing history would be the cornerstone of her successes.
Long before Holly Holm was head-kicking Hollywood stars, she was paving an impressive way for herself in the world of boxing. While it may seem unfathomable now, Holly Holm fell into the world of combat sports by accident. Holm, a gymnast and soccer star at high school, stumbled into a boxing aerobics class which was being thought by Mike Winklejohn, the pair immediately formed a close bond which culminated in a UFC title on Saturday night.
After a few sessions of the combat aerobics class Holly Holm was hooked, Mike Winklejohn noticed the Albuquerque nativeÂ’s immediate aptitude for fighting and took her under his wing. At the tender age of 20, Holm made her professional boxing debut against Martha Deitchman in a bout scheduled for 4 rounds. Holm dominated her debut from the opening bell before finally finishing her foe in the 3rd round.
In the months following the Deitchman fight, Holm scored another 3 dominant victories and all was going swimmingly for the “Preacher’s Daughter” until she stepped into the ring with Stephanie Jaramillo. Jaramillo, a Junior Olympic gold medalist, represented a monumental step-up in competition for Holm and it was truly apparent in their fight. Over the course of 4 rounds, the previously untouchable Holly Holm, got hit more times than she had in her previous fights combined, but the Winklejohn product was still able to take home the controversial majority decision over Jaramillo.
A mere two months removed from their first fight and Jaramillo and Holm found themselves staring opposite from each other in a ring. This fight, much like their first was an even affair, HolmÂ’s movement was sublime and JaramilloÂ’s timing was a crisp as ever. Over the course of 6 rounds, Holm and Jaramillo put on a technical tryst, which left the judges with no option but to declare the fight a draw. This testing fight would prove an important learning curve for the still relatively inexperienced Holm.
On the 26th of June, 2004, Holm once again found herself fighting in Sandia Casino in Albuquerque, this time HolmÂ’s opponent was hard hitting Italian, Rita Turrisi. In a tough fight, Holm suffered a nasty gash which impeded her vision greatly. HolmÂ’s injury lead to her corner throwing in the towel, which lead the referee to call a halt to proceedings, declaring Turrisi victorious and handing Holm her first taste of defeat.
READ MORE: Floyd Mayweather: 'I Want Ronda Rousey To Hold Her Head High'
The comeback road for Holm was rather straightforward.In Holly HolmÂ’s first bout following the Turrisi defeat, the Abequrque native annihilated Terri Blair to take home the IBA light welterweight title. This dominant victory would be a sign of things to come as of the most dominant period of her career.
It can be said that Holly Holm was never a power puncher and that is certainly true, HolmÂ’s modus operandi was always based upon movement and speed. Following the Blair fight, Holm rattled off a few more victories before taking the biggest fight of her career against Christy Martin. At the time of her fight with Christy Martin, HolmÂ’s record was a meagre 10-1-2, which was a stark contrast to the vastly more experienced Martin, who stood at 46-3-2 and was months removed from one of the biggest battles in WomenÂ’s boxing history, when she fought Laila Ali. Holm systematically picked apart Martin in a massive upset, this fight would prove to be a coming out party for Holm.
Holm’s next fight after beating Martin was quite high profile, the “Preacher’s Daughter” was tasked with fighting the celebrity Mia St. John, who in addition to being a capable boxer was a model. Much like the Martin fight, Holm was much too polished for the rugged St. John, Holm’s movement made her a untouchable target and her efficient counters were enough to earn her a decision victory.
In the years following the St. John fight, the accolades continued to pile in for Holm, each new victory brought Holm acclaim and in many cases a new title to bolster her already impressive collection.Holm seemed like she was on another level to all of her peers and was truly dominant until she met Mary Jo Sanders.
Mary Jo Sanders, the daughter of NFL hall of famer, Charlie Sanders, was seen as the biggest threat to HolmÂ’s crown when the pair met in 2008. Coming into the fight, the unbeaten Sanders was seen as a substantial favorite over Holm, but once again Holm would prove the oddsmakers to be wrong. Holm took a close decision over Sanders and then the pair drew in a rematch. The two Holm fights would prove to be the only blemishes on SandersÂ’ record.
As Holm reached the final stages of her boxing career she would taste the bitterness of defeat one final time. In late 2011, Holm was paired up with French phenom, Anne Sophie Mathis in a fight for the IBA and WBAN welterweight titles. From the opening bell, Mathis looked amazing against Holm. The Frenchwoman consistently landed hard shots on the American before scoring a brutal 7th round knockout. Holm would later avenge this loss in an immediate rematch, but this would prove to be the last high profile moment of her boxing career before she decided to switch to mixed martial arts in pursuit of Ronda RouseyÂ’s crown.
When looking back upon HolmÂ’s boxing career it is obvious to see that she has a penchant for proving the naysayers wrong, this is a trait that she brought with her to Octagon. While no one could have foreseen HolmÂ’s impeccable performance against Rousey it is interesting to note how she fought. HolmÂ’s performance at UFC 193 was very reminiscent to her boxing days, she played the matador and used movement to lead Rousey into her own fistic demise.
As the dust settles on HolmÂ’s boxing career it can be said that she was the greatest welterweight of her division and a true pioneer of her sport and it will be interesting to see if her successes in the Octagon will give the impetus to other boxers to make the switch to the cage.
On Saturday night, Albuquerque, New MexicoÂ’s Holly Holm pulled off one of the biggest upsets in the history of mixed martial arts when she knocked out the previously undefeated Ronda Rousey. Coming into Saturday nightÂ’s main event, many analysts were keen to talk up RouseyÂ’s judo background, but on the night it was HolmÂ’s striking advantage that would be the telling advantage, HolmÂ’s illustrious boxing history would be the cornerstone of her successes.
Long before Holly Holm was head-kicking Hollywood stars, she was paving an impressive way for herself in the world of boxing. While it may seem unfathomable now, Holly Holm fell into the world of combat sports by accident. Holm, a gymnast and soccer star at high school, stumbled into a boxing aerobics class which was being thought by Mike Winklejohn, the pair immediately formed a close bond which culminated in a UFC title on Saturday night.
After a few sessions of the combat aerobics class Holly Holm was hooked, Mike Winklejohn noticed the Albuquerque nativeÂ’s immediate aptitude for fighting and took her under his wing. At the tender age of 20, Holm made her professional boxing debut against Martha Deitchman in a bout scheduled for 4 rounds. Holm dominated her debut from the opening bell before finally finishing her foe in the 3rd round.
In the months following the Deitchman fight, Holm scored another 3 dominant victories and all was going swimmingly for the “Preacher’s Daughter” until she stepped into the ring with Stephanie Jaramillo. Jaramillo, a Junior Olympic gold medalist, represented a monumental step-up in competition for Holm and it was truly apparent in their fight. Over the course of 4 rounds, the previously untouchable Holly Holm, got hit more times than she had in her previous fights combined, but the Winklejohn product was still able to take home the controversial majority decision over Jaramillo.
A mere two months removed from their first fight and Jaramillo and Holm found themselves staring opposite from each other in a ring. This fight, much like their first was an even affair, HolmÂ’s movement was sublime and JaramilloÂ’s timing was a crisp as ever. Over the course of 6 rounds, Holm and Jaramillo put on a technical tryst, which left the judges with no option but to declare the fight a draw. This testing fight would prove an important learning curve for the still relatively inexperienced Holm.
On the 26th of June, 2004, Holm once again found herself fighting in Sandia Casino in Albuquerque, this time HolmÂ’s opponent was hard hitting Italian, Rita Turrisi. In a tough fight, Holm suffered a nasty gash which impeded her vision greatly. HolmÂ’s injury lead to her corner throwing in the towel, which lead the referee to call a halt to proceedings, declaring Turrisi victorious and handing Holm her first taste of defeat.
READ MORE: Floyd Mayweather: 'I Want Ronda Rousey To Hold Her Head High'
The comeback road for Holm was rather straightforward.In Holly HolmÂ’s first bout following the Turrisi defeat, the Abequrque native annihilated Terri Blair to take home the IBA light welterweight title. This dominant victory would be a sign of things to come as of the most dominant period of her career.
It can be said that Holly Holm was never a power puncher and that is certainly true, HolmÂ’s modus operandi was always based upon movement and speed. Following the Blair fight, Holm rattled off a few more victories before taking the biggest fight of her career against Christy Martin. At the time of her fight with Christy Martin, HolmÂ’s record was a meagre 10-1-2, which was a stark contrast to the vastly more experienced Martin, who stood at 46-3-2 and was months removed from one of the biggest battles in WomenÂ’s boxing history, when she fought Laila Ali. Holm systematically picked apart Martin in a massive upset, this fight would prove to be a coming out party for Holm.
Holm’s next fight after beating Martin was quite high profile, the “Preacher’s Daughter” was tasked with fighting the celebrity Mia St. John, who in addition to being a capable boxer was a model. Much like the Martin fight, Holm was much too polished for the rugged St. John, Holm’s movement made her a untouchable target and her efficient counters were enough to earn her a decision victory.
In the years following the St. John fight, the accolades continued to pile in for Holm, each new victory brought Holm acclaim and in many cases a new title to bolster her already impressive collection.Holm seemed like she was on another level to all of her peers and was truly dominant until she met Mary Jo Sanders.
Mary Jo Sanders, the daughter of NFL hall of famer, Charlie Sanders, was seen as the biggest threat to HolmÂ’s crown when the pair met in 2008. Coming into the fight, the unbeaten Sanders was seen as a substantial favorite over Holm, but once again Holm would prove the oddsmakers to be wrong. Holm took a close decision over Sanders and then the pair drew in a rematch. The two Holm fights would prove to be the only blemishes on SandersÂ’ record.
As Holm reached the final stages of her boxing career she would taste the bitterness of defeat one final time. In late 2011, Holm was paired up with French phenom, Anne Sophie Mathis in a fight for the IBA and WBAN welterweight titles. From the opening bell, Mathis looked amazing against Holm. The Frenchwoman consistently landed hard shots on the American before scoring a brutal 7th round knockout. Holm would later avenge this loss in an immediate rematch, but this would prove to be the last high profile moment of her boxing career before she decided to switch to mixed martial arts in pursuit of Ronda RouseyÂ’s crown.
When looking back upon HolmÂ’s boxing career it is obvious to see that she has a penchant for proving the naysayers wrong, this is a trait that she brought with her to Octagon. While no one could have foreseen HolmÂ’s impeccable performance against Rousey it is interesting to note how she fought. HolmÂ’s performance at UFC 193 was very reminiscent to her boxing days, she played the matador and used movement to lead Rousey into her own fistic demise.
As the dust settles on HolmÂ’s boxing career it can be said that she was the greatest welterweight of her division and a true pioneer of her sport and it will be interesting to see if her successes in the Octagon will give the impetus to other boxers to make the switch to the cage.