Holly Holm’s Manager: We’re Not Afraid Of Anybody On The UFC’s List, We Want To Get A Good Payday
Highly touted 18-time boxing world champion and undefeated mixed martial artist Holly Holm got her first taste of MMA gold last Friday (April 4, 2014) when she knocked out an overmatched Juliana Werner with a fifth round headkick to win the women’s bantamweight championship at Legacy FC 30.
The win set up Holm to most likely either move to the UFC or sign on to face Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino in a rumored pay-per-view. However, Holm broke her right arm in defeating Werner, something that could slow down her move on to bigger and better things.
Plus, there’s the big issue of her manager Lenny Fresquez not getting along with UFC President Dana White. Fresquez apparently irked White so much that he said he was “not interested” in signing Holm to the UFC. Both Holm and Fresquez appeared on today’s “The MMA Hour” just moments ago, with “The Preacher’s Daughter” kicking off the interview by describing her injury:
“We’re just talking with the orthopedic surgeons to see what the best choice is going to be, either to let it heal how it is or to have it plated. It happened in the first round; she kind of threw a kick, like a head kick, and it wasn’t really even the hardest kick, and I kind of lazily threw my arm up to block it and it hit just right, and I felt a little snap in there.
I didn’t say anything to my corner until the third. I just kind of fought through it and thought what’s done is done and we’ll fix it later. I want the best end result, so that might be surgery.”
Talk naturally shifted to Holm’s next move, as she not surprisingly has been targeted as a potential blockbuster opponent for UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey. With current Invicta FC featherweight champion “Cyborg” as another possible opponent, Fresquez discussed Holm’s performance:
“Well, we knew she needed to perform. Every opportunity I’ve put in front of Holly, she’s conquered it. She knew what she needed to do and she took care of business as usual.”
Fresquez was of course asked about Holm’s oft-discussed move to the UFC, something that was supposedly put on hold by his meeting with White:
“I really don’t want to comment on that. I can’t control what Dana says or doesn’t say, and my job is to represent Holly to the best of my ability.”
Holm then added her two cents on the issue:
“You know, I really didn’t pay too much attention to it. It’s not anything I take personally, and I figure my job as a fighter is to perform and that’s all I’m going to worry about. We’ll let everything fall into place how it goes.
I feel like I just want to definitely sit down at the drawing board and look at our opportunities and where we go from here. I definitely want to take care of my own first. There’s no definite answer right now.”
Holm’s answer is quite vague, leaving a ton of uncertainty about her next move. She of course has to wait and see what the doctors say about her broken arm. She also seems to be incredibly focused on making herself a huge star, something that may lead to continued conflict with UFC brass.
Fresquez confirmed that the UFC made them an offer that they didn’t like, stating that Holm is second-to-none in women’s MMA. Rousey and “Cyborg” may have a different point of view, however.
Still, Fresquez insisted that not one fighter on the UFC women’s roster would present problems for Holm:
“In my book, Holly is the baddest girl in the world. We’re not afraid of anybody on the UFC’s list; they don’t really bother us, so we are looking to build up a big fight, and we want to get a good payday.”
That last part about a big payday is most likely what is preventing Holm from already being signed to fight in the Octagon.
We’ll just have to wait and see what transpires, because all of this talk is getting very long-winded. Will “The Preacher’s Daughter” ever end up in the UFC?
