UFC on ABC 2 is the next MMA spectacle on the menu, and the main event of the same will be the middleweight clash between Marvin Vettori and Kevin Holland. Holland replaced Darren Till, who was originally planned to face Vettori but had to cancel his participation due to a collarbone injury. Even though he had just 10 days to prepare for this fight, Holland decided to jump in and try his luck. It seems that he wants to redeem for the recent loss against Derek Brunson, but to be honest, this is a very risky move. He will have a very motivated and tough opponent across the ring and one of the potential title challengers in the near future. BetXChange brings an exclusive preview of this event, with the prediction at the end of the same.
Preview
Vettori wants to win this one and then challenge Adesanya, the last guy who managed to defeat the Italian. These two met three years ago, and Izzy’s split-decision win was pretty controversial. Many believe that Vettori came out as the winner from that bout, but the official result was different.
It appears that the injustice motivated the Italian Dream, which is his nickname, as he later posted four wins in a row. The first one was against Cesar Ferreira, then Andrew Sanchez, Karl Roberson, and finally a triumph Jack Hermansson. It was one of the best performances for Vettori in his career and a moment once he became one of the possible challengers for Adesanya.
Vettori is a very nasty fighter. He is hard and can take a lot of beating, regardless of the opponent across the octagon. He doesn’t have some particular trademark skill, but knows his way around in each area of the fight. With 27 years of age, there is still a lot of space for improvement, and don’t be surprised if you see this guy wearing the title belt one day.
Holland didn’t manage to set the new UFC record in wins inside one year and wasted an opportunity to meet Adesanya this summer. His easy loss to Derek Bruson is the only reason for that, as Holland looked helpless against the veteran who outwrestled the TrailBlazer in their recent clash.
Even though he tried to camouflage the inability to resist Brunson with his constant talking, it was more than obvious that Holland didn’t stand a chance in that battle. His light frame was just too big of a deficit against Brunson’s raw power.
Holland’s latest five wins (four of them via KO) all lost their value following this failure, as many began questioning his abilities to compete in this division with such a physical deficit. He might be one of a kind showman in the UFC, but still, that won’t help him inside the octagon.
Prediction
Our pick here is Vettori. He is way too strong for Holland, who might be faster and more aggressive, but if by any chance he ends up in Vettori’s reach, things aren’t going to pleasant for the American. We don’t know did he had enough time to heal following a loss to Brunson, but to be honest, Holland didn’t take some strong hits and punches in that event, and he probably came out of the same without notable issues.
Anyway, we strongly believe that he doesn’t have any chances against Vettori, who looks terrifying in recent times. Therefore, betting on his victory would be a very smart thing to do.
Pick: Vettori at BetXChange
