According to a Jan. 25 report from 1017theteam.com, three-division world champion Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm (32-2-3, 9 KOs) is looking to make a transition to the MMA ranks in 2013, citing a lack of legitimate top-notch opponents in boxing.
Holmes' promoter, Fresquez Productions, announced that Holm (2-0) would be in a Bellator MMA fight on Feb. 28th live from the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho, NM. “We’re not waiting around to fight anybody,” Fresquez noted. “Holly can be a world champion in MMA, too, but boxing is her first love. We can’t make Braekhus fight Holly. Unfortunately, the dilemma for Holly is that there just aren’t any big names left for her to box, at least those ready and willing to fight her.”
Holm, 31, has a kickboxing background, so a transition to MMA isn't all that ridiculous. She already has two MMA bouts under her belt, and she won both by way of knockout.
Her lack of MMA fights is due to her concentration on boxing, which has been more lucrative.
Holm's head trainer in boxing, Mike Winkeljohn, is one of the head coaches at the famed Jackson's/Winkeljohn Mixed Martial Arts Gym in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Team Jackson-Winkeljohn is recognized as one of the best in MMA, featuring UFC light heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones, a training and sparring partner for Holm.
She also happens to be the same weight as Ronda Rousey, so jumping ship to the UFC's 135-pound women's division seems inevitable. Now that the world's top MMA promotion has invested in developing women's MMA, sticking to boxing may not be the most lucrative option anymore for Holm.
As for Rousey, who is slated to fight Liz Carmouche on Feb. 23 at UFC 157, she has a line of legit MMA bantamweights waiting in the wings, as Cat Zingano, Sara McMann, Alexis Davis and Miesha Tate are just a few of the names being thrown around as potential challengers.
There's also the real very chance that Cris Santos will eventually get down to 135 pounds to fight Rousey in the UFC, so Holm at this point in time seems like a distant wild-card threat to the star judoka's reign.
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