UFC Fight Night 141 Results: UFC Fighter collects first ever promotional win
What's the story?
UFC stopped off at China for UFC Fight Night 141, where, in the city of Beijing the crowd prepared for the ultimate rematch of Curtis Blaydes and Francis Ngannou.
However, in the preliminary card, before the main event could take place, another battle of a different kind was going on. In it, Kevin Holland took on John Phillips in one of the only non-Chinese fights of the night.
In case you didn't know...
The last time that Kevin Holland entered a UFC Octagon, it was on his debut. He faced Thiago Santos at UFC 2278, coming off the back of one of the more impressive performances on Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series.
Suffice to say, that did not go well for him at all. He lost that fight via Unanimous Decision and ended up with a loss on his debut fight. He came into this fight looking to get a big win and make his mark in UFC.
The heart of the matter
After three rounds of back-and-forth, the fight between Kevin Holland and John Phillips came to a dramatic end.
The first round had been Kevin Holland dominating his opposition completely, but things changed in the second round, and it did not appear as if Holland had a solitary chance to win the fight.
Phillips had taken control and seemed intent on maintaining it. Holland finally took the third round by storm, making sure to keep Phillips grounded throughout.
The strategy paid off well, with Holland being able to take Phillips' back towards the end of the third round, and cinch in a Rear Naked Choke. With just less than a minute to go, Phillips ended up having to tap out to Holland at 4 minutes and 5 seconds.
What's next?
With Holland now having secured a win, he will go on to face future opponents with more confidence. Notching up a couple of high-profile wins should now be the priority of the fighter.