UFC Legend Holly Holm Returns to Boxing for World Title Shot Against Undefeated Stephanie Han
Holly Holm steps back into the boxing ring this Saturday at the Coliseo Roberto Clemente in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to challenge WBA lightweight champion Stephanie Han for the 135-pound title. It’s the co-main event of the Amanda Serrano card on DAZN, starting at 8 PM ET, marking Holm’s second bout since signing with Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions in May.
Holly Holm Fights for WBA Lightweight Title Against Undefeated Stephanie Han This Saturday
This moment carries significance for Holm, who retired from boxing in 2013 after defending her super lightweight titles against Mary McGee. For over a decade, she focused entirely on mixed martial arts, becoming the first athlete to win world titles in both boxing and MMA.
Her knockout of Ronda Rousey at UFC 193 in November 2015, a 9-1 underdog victory in front of 56,215 fans in Melbourne, remains one of combat sports’ defining upsets. Holm held the UFC bantamweight title and challenged for titles across multiple divisions before parting ways with the promotion in January 2025.
When Holm retired from boxing, she carried a 33-2-3 record with 19 world titles won and defended across welterweight, junior welterweight, and junior middleweight divisions. She defeated notable opposition including Christy Martin, Mia St. John, and Jane Couch, earning 2022 induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Her return fight on June 28 at the Honda Center, against undefeated Yolanda Vega on the Jake Paul versus Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. card, showed Holm’s boxing fundamentals remained intact. The judges scored that bout 100-90 across the board.
At 44 years old, Holm says her boxing has improved since she was 31, a sentiment shared by longtime trainer Mike Winkeljohn. She’s aiming to become a four-division champion at lightweight, a weight class where she’s never previously held a title.
Han represents a different challenge. The 35-year-old El Paso native turned professional in 2021 and compiled an undefeated 11-0 record with 3 knockouts. She claimed the WBA title in February 2025 with a first-round knockout of Hannah Terlep, then defended successfully against Colombia’s Paulina Ángel in August despite being knocked down in the opening round. Outside boxing, Han works as an eight-year veteran of the El Paso Police Department and is the sister of former IBF featherweight champion Jennifer Han.
