Following the last-minute exit of Ian Machado Garry. Kevin Holland has stepped in at the last minute to face Vicente Luque on the main card of UFC 296.
For those unaware, Garry and Luque were poised to cross swords this weekend on the main card of UFC 296. But this planned bout went up in flames after the Irishman was forced to pull out of the fight. According to UFC President Dana White, Garry was showing symptoms of the flu, which was later diagnosed as pneumonia. This forced ‘The Future’ to pull out from the event, leaving the Brazilian without an opponent. But it looks like Kevin Holland has come to the rescue.
Vicente Luque and Kevin Holland set for a tussle at UFC 296
Standing true to his ‘Card Saver’ status. Kevin Holland has once again rescued MMA fans from being robbed of a fight. The American has stepped in at the last minute to accept the matchup against Vicente Luque. Holland has proposed to replace Ian Machado Garry, who had to pull out of the fight just hours before due to a recently diagnosed pneumonia.
This isn’t the first time that ‘Trailblazer’ has come to the aid of a UFC event by accepting a short notice fight. Back in 2020, Holland went on an impressive 5-fight win streak at middleweight. The majority of those fights being accepted at the eleventh hour. Something similar was once again witnessed last year when Holland replaced Nate Diaz in matchup against Khamzat Chimaev hours way from the bout. Following this tradition, Holland took to Twitter and wrote: “Here is the deal…. I checked with both my wife and my gf, and they said I can fight this weekend.”
Just like Holland, Vicente Luque too had given his nod for this clash. “So, guys, I saw Kevin Holland wants to jump in to substitute for the fight Saturday night and I want to tell you guys, I’m down,” Luque said in a video on Instagram. “So Kevin, if you’re really down to come here, let’s do this. Let’s mix it up. Let’s get in that Octagon and go to war. And hey, I’m willing to do 180 so we can do it at 180, and let’s put on a show for all the crowd,” he further added.
Despite the options, Dana White takes a different route
After Ian Machado Garry pulled out of UFC 296, Vicente Luque was left without an opponent. However, UFC still had an opportunity to bring an opponent for Luque at the last moment, especially after the Brazilian’s nod of acceptance. Apart from ‘ever ready’ Kevin Holland, there was also the option to replace Garry with Belal Muhammad.
For those wondering, Palestinian is serving as a backup fighter for the welterweight title fight between Colby Covington and Leon Edwards for the main event. However, despite the availability of options, it seems like Dana White and company don’t seem too keen on an eleventh-hour matchup for the Brazilian. Instead, the company has elevated the already booked Bryce Michelle vs. Josh Emmett to the main card from its previous preliminary status.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
