Haven't we been down this road with Kevin before? He losses a few, gets a decent win and then we all convince each other in some weird MMA circle jerk that he is champion caliber? The reality is that Kevin is a good striker and a solid grappler but doesn't care enough to trust. Fights at 170 are a little more reliable because at the very least you know he has to put in the gym time to keep the weight down, but a guy who has been in the UFC for this long and at this level to have this poor of takedown defense is not a guy you can trust as a favorite. I picked him in his last fight against Gunnar because Gunnar shows up once ever 2 years to fight at home for a paycheck, that is not Vicente. Vicente, even on this back 9 of his career, is a dangerous guy who can fight everywhere. We are only a year removed from his win over RDA where he looked like a Nurmagomedov. Just 10% of that in this fight will get him the win. Vicente is the pick here, but i do love Kevin and likely can't bet against him.
Vicente Luque
Vincente Luque is pretty good everywhere. He has power in his hands, solid wrestling defense and fantastic submissions if it gets to the ground. At the end of the day he is a striker and is looking to bang it out on his feet. He is seemingly aging out of the UFC but is somehow only 33 despite having fought such high level competition for so long. He is coming off the submission win over Themba Gorimbo where despite only landing 2 strikes, the striking did set up the finish.
Kevin Holland
Kevin Holland is an accurate and powerful striker who has struggled and continues to struggle with takedown defense but has very solid grappling when he is taken down. Other than the wrestling defense, Kevin is a problem for a lot of people. He's a sniper on his feet with great accuracy and range. He can also grapple really well and be a competitive on the ground with his length. He is coming off the the decision win over Gunnar Nelson where the BJJ was slick and the striking almost got him a finish.
