Holly Holm has some decisions to make regarding her fighting future.
It’s been a long and eventful ride for “The Preacher’s Daughter,” who already put together a Hall of Fame boxing career before her full-time transition to MMA. Despite having two fights left on her UFC contract, Holm requested and was granted her release Monday, ending a 10-year run with the promotion.
Holm, 43, isn’t ready to hang up her gloves just yet despite her laundry list of accomplishments in both the cage and the ring. The former UFC bantamweight champion wants to ensure she can continue fighting relatively quickly after sitting on the sidelines for eight months since her final UFC appearance.
Does that mean a return to boxing, where Holm first made her name?
“I know a lot of people have a lot of thoughts that I need to be retired and all that,” Holm said on Uncrowned’s “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “It’s definitely closer, but I’m just not there yet. I know I still have a couple of fights left in me, and I want to see what doors open up. Maybe I go to boxing. I know there’s a lot of talk with GFL, so I’m just leaving my options open.
“When I boxed, I fought at 140 [pounds], 147 and 154. I never fought at 135 in boxing. So sometimes I feel like it’s unfinished business. Do I go back? The people that have belts at that weight class are [Amanda] Serrano and [Katie] Taylor. So sometimes it’s like, is that unfinished business? Because that’s most of my fights in MMA — the majority of them were at 135, but I never fought at 135 in boxing, so who knows?”
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Holm has lived a whole life of combat, even competing in kickboxing since her youth before she rose to fame in boxing and MMA. One of Holm’s main reasons for making her move to MMA when she did in 2013 was because she’d already conquered the squared circle and fought every big name she could.
Admittedly, the idea of leaving the UFC didn’t cross Holm’s mind until recently. That’s more of a testament to her “one step at a time” attitude. But as she enters this final chapter to close out her career, one more fight in both MMA and boxing strikes Holm’s interest most.
“I think that’d be awesome,” Holm said. “When I go for runs and when I picture things I want to do, I still want another head-kick knockout. You can’t do that in boxing. Then I also think, man, it’d be really cool to go and fight for a fourth weight division in boxing. So, why not? I think of both of those things, pretty much down the middle. But I think my heart still — maybe I lean a little more toward MMA first? I don’t know. I guess I want to see what opens.
“If I go back [to boxing], I definitely want to fight those big fights. But before [I went to MMA], boxing just wasn’t promoted where it’s at now. It was not as viewed as much as it is now. There’s definitely more exposure for women’s boxing [today]. I definitely feel that I had a big part in that to help bring it to where it’s at now. But to be able to go back and make a statement in boxing, it would be awesome.”
Although Holm’s big decision is still fresh, it’s similar to her arrival in MMA.
She never needed to pursue the sport. Some outside voices even told her not to do it.
Yet in the end? Everything worked out pretty well.
Holm was a fixture of the UFC’s women’s bantamweight division at its peak as soon as she debuted against fellow future champion Raquel Pennington. By the end of that rookie UFC year in 2015, Holm claimed gold with her iconic head-kick knockout of then-undefeated champion Ronda Rousey.
Even in recent years, Holm remained competitive with the best the division offered despite being in her 40s.
“I know that I’m not going to fight forever, but I still want a couple more,” Holm said. “I had been in a little bit of talks just trying to see if anything would happen. I did want to be able to dance in the UFC Octagon one more time, but it just didn’t seem like it was something that was going to be promised.
“I did have two fights left on the contract, but that’s not always promised, and I didn’t want to wait around forever either. So I want to see what other options there are. There’s no negative thoughts, no hate, or anything like that. I’m super, super thankful for my entire journey with the UFC and all the opportunities that they’ve given me, and being able to fight for a title. I’m super thankful for the journey, and I’m not done.”
Holm is excited about the prospects of a boxing return and any other combat sport possibility. She would’ve stuck with UFC but appealing terms on those final two offerings just didn’t materialize.
April’s historic UFC 300 event will ultimately be Holm’s final fight in front of a UFC crowd. Unfortunately for the proud Albuquerque native, she suffered a second-round rear-naked choke loss to Kayla Harrison.
Going out on a high note would’ve been nice, but the former champion isn’t dwelling on the past.
“I would definitely have liked that, but I’m not one of those that get so set on one thing that if life doesn’t go that way, you’re mad about it,” Holm said. “I definitely would have liked to say, ‘Hey, you guys, this is my last one. I want to put it on the show for you.’
“I’m disappointed in myself that I didn’t perform in my last fight, and that’s on me. So I always take my own responsibility with things. I think I still have definitely a lot left in me, but I haven’t shown that in my last fight. So I still wanted to show more before I was not able to fight with UFC anymore.”
