'So many fights I don't remember' - UFC's most active fighter

BBC News

30-05-2025

UFC veteran Kevin Holland is once again preparing to return to the octagon as he faces Vicente Luque on 7 June.Fighting out of Texas, Holland is known for his short turnarounds and his fight in New Jersey is no different.Luque will be Holland's 21st fight for the UFC since 2020, making him the company's most active competitor during this period.Having made his UFC debut in 2018 - a decision loss against Thiago Santos - Holland catapulted to fame in 2020 because of his activity.Despite limited events because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Holland managed five fights throughout 2020 - winning all five and equalling the record for most UFC wins in a calendar year.For some fighters, five bouts in a year simply isn't possible - but for 'The Trailblazer', this is nothing new."My whole career I've always been pretty active. You're an athlete, you can't be an athlete for 40 years, you can only be it for so long. So take advantage and wish for the best," he told BBC Sport.Holland's next fight will be his 41st professional bout in 10 years - on three occasions he has competed five or more times in a single year. "Between super matches in jiu jitsu, Muay Thai, MMA, I'd fight seven to eight times a year. I've always fought a lot, never really sit on my butt too much," he added."I've had so many fights I don't remember none of them."
'I don't really need much time between fights'
Luque will be Holland's third UFC fight of 2025, most recently defeating Icelandic legend Gunnar Nelson in March.Before that, Holland suffered a disappointing first-round loss to Reinier de Ridder in January - just three months after he was pulled from a fight after suffering from a broken rib."I fought against De Ridder probably a little faster then I should've done. At the end of the day, you only learn from being in there. Experience is the best teacher and I tend to get quite a bit of experience," he said."As soon as I was healthy to go it's straight back in the gym. It's simple, I like to stay in there and stay active."I don't really need much time in between fights, two days is typically all a man needs."
His constant fighting isn't the only reason for fame inside the UFC - his antics inside the cage have also won him a number of fans.Notorious for speaking to his opponents while fighting, Holland most famously asked UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov for "wrestling advice" during an encounter with Derek Brunson in 2021.But as he sits loading up his gaming console while sat in his Texas home, Holland admitted his history of talking inside the cage isn't just for entertainment purposes."My brain goes a lot of places. You ever heard of ADHD and stuff like that? It's not that fighting is boring, it's a fun sport, but there's a lot of things going through my brain at one time," he said."I'm talking to you, I'm still loading up on the game, I'm always doing 300 things at one time. I'm not good at focusing on one thing for too long."
With Luque ranked 14th in the welterweight division, a win for Holland would likely bring him back into the top 15 of the rankings.Having gone through a tough run of form, this could come as a huge boost for Holland's future inside the company.But when asked for advice, Holland admitted he doesn't look too far into the future."I'm just focused on one thing only, and that's the fight coming up," he said."Treat MMA like a real job. Respect and appreciate it, listen to your coaches, and put the grind in. "Don't listen to the critics, listen to the coaches."