Holm dethrones Rousey as UFC champ

MANILA, Philippines – Holly Holm used her boxing skills to the hilt as she dethroned Ronda Rousey in a shocking, sensational second round knockout to claim the bantamweight title in the main event of UFC 193 at the Etihad Stadium in Melbourne, Australia yesterday.

Holm, a multi-division world boxing title-holder, rocked Rousey with a left straight then sent the once mighty champion and former Olympic bronze medalist to the canvas with a vicious head kick.

She then pounced on the fallen Rousey, hammering her with several blows to the head, forcing referee Herb Dean to intervene and stop the fight, and enabling Holm to notch her 10th straight win and post one of the biggest upsets in the history of the world’s best fight outfit.

“I had so much love and support,” Holm, in tears, said during the post-fight interview. “I just felt like ‘how can I not do this?’ I had the best coaching, from stand-up to grappling, to wrestling.”

More importantly, Holm accomplished what no fighter before her had done – knock Rousey out cold and deal her first ever defeat after 12 straight victories.

Rousey came into the bout the heavy favorite, being the undefeated, undisputed UFC champion with an impressive resumé of 12 straight wins, all via submissions or TKOs.

All but one of Rousey’s victories came in the first round.

The longest match Rousey had was a three-round submission of Miesha Tate in UFC 168 on Dec. 28, 2013.

Cockiness and a porous defense were factors that hastened Rousey’s downfall.

Rebuffed by Rousey on her offer of a touch of gloves, Holm quickly went to work as she used her world class boxing skills to stick and move effectively while landing some powerful shots in the early going while eluding Rousey’s takedown attempts. The challenger left the frustrated champion with a bloodied nose at the end of the first round.

Rousey went for a counter at the start of the second, pushing her rival around the ring until Holm struck back with a crisp left and a devastating left kick that instantly dropped the former to the canvas.

Holm swiftly jumped on her rival, delivering several blows to the head to pound out the victory. As the referee stopped the fight, Holm jumped around the ring as Rousey receive medical treatment amid the roar of a stunned record UFC crowd. – With AP