Holly Holm training with Jon Jones (Photo : Holly Holm Instagram)
Following her defeat at UFC196, losing her UFC women's bantamweight title to then challenger Miesha "Cupcake" Tate (18-5), fromer champion Holly "The Preacher's Daughter" Holm (10-1) is back right where she wants to be, training for a chance to redeem herself.
The 34-year old former professional boxer made a smooth transition from boxing to mixed martial arts, going unbeaten at 10 wins and no losses, capturing the UFC title with a shock victory over Ronda Rousey.
Holm was the favorite going into the Tate bout, but experienced difficulty keeping Tate from grappling. Tate, awaiting just a sliver of an opponent to close the gap on Holm, saw her opportunity late in the fifth and final round and capitalized.
Once Tate grabbed a hold of Holm's back, she slipped on a rear naked choke and a single leg hook. Holm tried to escape with a hip throw -- the standard defense for a rear naked choke with single leg hook -- but Tate was able to maintain the hold despite going for a ride.
On the ground, Tate sunk both hooks in and tightened her grip on Holm's neck. Holm tried her best to pry Tate's hands off but to no avail. Holm soon lost consciousness and the fight was waved off, crowning Tate the winner and the new champion.
Immediately after the bout, Holm expressed her desire to get right back in training and work on a possible rematch.
In photos posted by Holm on Instagram, Holm can be seen training with former UFC heavyweight champion Jon "Bones" Jones, UFC lightweight legend BJ Penn and UFC women's strawweight Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Jones is in the midst of training for a rematch with reigning heavyweight champion Daniel "DC" Cormier while Penn is training for a UFC comeback after a brief retirement.
The undefeated Jedrzejczyk is scheduled to face Claudia Gadelha this July.
