Report: Holly Holm will return to site of stunning Ronda Rousey KO to fight Raquel Pennington
Holly Holm will look for history to repeat itself when she returns to Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia, where she delivered a stunning knockout of Ronda Rousey in 2015.
Holm has agreed to fight Raquel Pennington, the fighter she debuted against, at UFC 243 in Melbourne on Oct. 5, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto reported.
Holm, Rousey history at Marvel Stadium
A former world boxing champion, Rousey was on top of the MMA world in the early part of the decade. She won her first six UFC fights, sold out arenas and had high pay-per-view sales.
Then in November 2015, she squared up with Holm at Marvel Stadium for UFC 193. Holm delivered the knockout with a kick to the head in the second round to win the bantamweight championship in a major upset. It shifted the MMA world.
Rousey suffered a knockout in 48 seconds against Amanda Nunes during her next fight a year later and retired shortly afterward. Now with WWE, the 32-year-old has said she is “so happy I lost those fights.”
Holm up and down since Rousey KO
It’s been an odd road for the 37-year-old Holm since that win. She went on a three-fight, 18-month losing streak, letting go of her title, until she took out Bethe Correia with a kick to the head in June 2017. She’s 2-5 since defeating Rousey, including a recent KO loss to Nunes at UFC 239.
Holm, Pennington rematch from 2015
Who’s ready for the rematch??? 🔥🔥🔥 cuz I know I’ve been waiting!!!! #TeamRocky #ufc #october #Australia pic.twitter.com/IofwhuSEFk
— Raquel Pennington (@RockyPMMA) August 7, 2019
The contracts for Oct. 5 have not been signed, but Holm (12-5) and Pennington (10-7) verbally agreed to a 135-pound bantamweight fight, per ESPN. It will be a rematch of their February 2015 fight, which was Holm’s UFC debut.
Holm won via a split-decision at UFC 184, propelling her to the Rousey showdown. She’s currently ranked No. 3 in the UFC bantamweight division.
Pennington lost to Nunes in a title fight in May 2018 and has since dealt with injuries and health scares, per the Colorado Spring Gazette. She returned to UFC in July, defeating Irene Aldana in a split-decision. She’s ranked No. 6 in the weight class.
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