VIDEO: UFC Fight of the Year? Karate Thompson almost kicked his opponent’s head off, but he showed incredible toughness!

The MMA weekend in the Czech Republic was overshadowed by the Oktagon tournament, but overseas there was another incredible UFC gala. The main event between Stephen Thompson and Kevin Holland was of great interest to fans, and was a serious contender for fight of the year!

Thompson vs. Holland main event of UFC in Orlando

In the early hours of Sunday, another mixed martial arts gala was held in Florida by the world’s biggest organization, the UFC. The nearly 20,000 capacity Amway Center arena in Orlando witnessed a tournament that exceeded all expectations.

The main fight of the night was a clash of generations within the middleweight division. American Stephen Thompson (16-6-1), who has been in the top MMA league in the world for over a decade, has been close to the Welterweight title twice during his MMA career. However, he was fated by Tyron Woodley, who defeated him on points in a title rematch after a draw at UFC 205.

The third-best fighter with the most knockouts in UFC welterweight history has more than 1,000 significant strikes in the organization. His fights always guarantee a great spectacle and he regularly attacks the performance of the night awards with his highlights via head kicks.

At just 30 years old, his opponent Kevin Holland (23-8-1) is brimming with considerable experience. With 17 fights in the UFC, the fifth best striking accuracy in middleweight history marks a feared striker who threatens with often brutal uppercuts.

Duel was awarded fight of the night and is in the running for fight of the year!

Holland literally saved the UFC gala at September’s UFC 279 when he agreed to measure his strength against the sinful Khamzat Chimaev, who underweighed him by nearly 4 kg. He didn’t stand a chance against the Swedish Wolf, but the organization’s management values him for the frequency and attractiveness of his fights. Eleven fights since 2020 makes him the busiest fighter in the organization.

The first round of the fight already showed that it will be an exceptional fight. Thompson was very active from the opening bell and was certainly ahead of his opponent in the frequency of significant strikes. Holland, however, inflicted more damage on the UFC veteran, which was evident in the gash on his eyebrow.

Despite the predatory Holland continually pressuring his opponent, Thompson showed excellent movement, destroying his younger rival with precise counters from the retreat. The 39-year-old American began to assert himself more and more with the onset of the third round with the karate elements he acquired during his illustrious career as a kickboxer, where he remained undefeated in 57 fights.

Thompson’s performance and Holland’s tenacity stirred great emotions

Then in the fourth round, a strange situation arose when “Wonderboy” landed several hard roundkicks on Holland’s right hand. From then on, he was clearly unable to use his limb in the fight, which his opponent duly took advantage of. His coach revealed after the fight that Holland had broken his arm in the first round and Thompson’s kicks only finished it off as the fight progressed.

Holland thus showed tremendous resilience by fighting off a well-presented Thompson for four whole rounds with a broken arm. But the amount of head kicks Holland absorbed during the fourth round in particular leaves the mind standing even more. Then, in the interval before the last round, the information came from Holland’s corner that the fight was over.

Division Six Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson proved that even at his age, he is still not old hat and has a lot to offer the UFC. The epic battle of elite stand-ups not only got the fight of the night award, but quite possibly will shuffle the cards in the best fight of the year.

Source: UFC, Twitter, Premier Sport, MMA Junkie