UFC 272 results: Kevin Holland starches Alex Oliveira, begins Welterweight era with sweet TKO finish

Things weren’t going all that great for Kevin Holland at Middleweight despite a ridiculous record-setting pandemic run in 2020 that featured five wins in a calendar year, so “Trailblazer” dropped to Welterweight tonight (Sat., March 5, 2022) to try and lasso Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira at UFC 272, which is taking place inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Mission 170 accomplished.

Holland brushed off a shaky start to storm back and finish Oliveira less than 40 seconds into the second round.

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Holland came out aggressive, throwing a few inside leg kicks and jumping in with a jab. Oliveira countered, but didn’t connect. Inside leg kick from Oliveira, who then thwarted a Holland advance, punching him back into the fence and drilling him with a straight shot as he jumped up. Overhand right from Holland, then another inside low kick, with Oliveira countering with a high kick that was blocked. Oliveira knocked Holland off his feet with a low kick, he played guard for a minute, got back to his feet and was slammed to the mat. Holland got back to his feet and wobbled Oliveira with a hard shot. Holland thought he has him hurt, but Oliveira drilled him with a clean overhand right that made him think twice about his pursuit. Holland continued his attacks with his legs, with Oliveira countering with hard straight shots upstairs. Holland with a hard low kick that had Oliveira limping, then again, with the Brazilian firing back with a pair of his own. There was a wild scramble at the end, with Oliveira almost locking up a sweet rear-naked choke, but Holland had it well defended, giving the camera an unimpressed “thumbs up” as the round came to a close.

Oliveira with a low kick to start the second stanza, but then Holland — who was getting berated/heated in his corner between rounds — dropped Oliveira with a short right hook that sent him flying to the bottom of the fence. He pounced, drilling Oliveira with countless shots. He tried to fight back, but eventually Holland’s volume and pace was just too much to overcome, with the referee stepping in to save him just 38 seconds into round two.

After a shaky start, Holland got what he needed — an emphatic finish of an established veteran. Look out, Welterweights.

Final result: Holland def. Oliveira via technical knockout (strikes) in round two

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