Kayla Harrison Beats Holly Holm By 2nd-Round Submission in Debut at UFC 300

Alex Ballentine wrote a blog on April 14, 2024.

The blog post was originally written in a complex English style, but I will rewrite it in free English using simpler language. The picture shows a man named Jeff Bottari who works for Zuffa LLC. He is most likely a photographer or editor for the company. The blog post is an article written by someone about an event or topic. It was written in complicated English which can be difficult to understand. However, I will rewrite it using language that is easier to read. That is the process of rewriting something in free English. It takes the original text and simplifies it so that it is easy for anyone to understand.

Kayla Harrison, an athlete who has won the Olympic gold medal twice, made her debut in UFC by securing a submission victory over Holly Holm in the second round. This event happened during the undercard of UFC 300 held in Las Vegas.

Harrison had complete control over the first round with few exceptions. She executed a judo throw very early in the round, but Holm managed to reverse it and took a dominant position. However, Harrison's sheer strength allowed her to easily stand back up on her feet.

After that, Harrison assumed control.

The skilled judoka easily threw Holm down and revealed her expertise in ground-and-pound techniques. She incessantly struck Holm with her elbows, despite them being prohibited by PFL regulations.

Kayla Harrison started off strong in round 1, fulfilling her promises of dominance during the #UFC300 event. Her actions matched her words.

Harrison remained in control during the second round by using the same strategy. She showed compassion when she tried to submit Holm by taking her back and applying a rear-naked choke. Holm surrendered almost immediately.

Wow, Kayla Harrison dominated her first round in the UFC with an astonishing 46-1 advantage in significant strikes. And in her second round, she quickly finished off a former champion with a Rear Naked Choke hold. It's clear that Kayla has arrived and she's here to claim her throne as queen of the UFC. This is all happening at UFC300 and it's just incredible to watch.

Harrison expressed his aspirations to Joe, stating that he desires to hold the title in his next fight. He confidently declared that he will achieve this goal and become the champion of UFC by the end of the year.

Harrison established herself as a prominent figure in the world of judo, earning top honors in the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games and dominating many other high-profile competitions involving the sport. Taking a similar path as fellow judoka Ronda Rousey, she smoothly pivoted to mixed martial arts and found great success.

Harrison became a huge success in PFL by winning the women's lightweight tournament two times. Throughout most of her career in mixed martial arts, she competed in PFL and had an impressive record of 16-1. This included six knockouts and six submissions.

One of the most remarkable things about her first match in UFC was something that happened the morning before the fight - she successfully reached the bantamweight limit. In Judo, Harrison used to compete at 171 pounds, whereas in PFL, she has switched between featherweight (145 pounds) and lightweight (155 pounds).

Showing that she's capable of meeting the 135-pound weight limit creates various new opportunities for her as she makes her way into the UFC.

However, her objective remains unchanged, just like in all her previous combat sports experiences, as she aims to win the gold medal.

As per Shaun Al-Shatti of MMA Fighting, the fighter expressed that despite being a world champion and a two-time Olympic champion in judo with wins in all tournaments, and having ample savings, her aim was always to become the UFC champion since commencing MMA. The fighter disclosed that she took a year to ponder over her MMA goal and affirmed that her objective remained the same.

Defeating Holly Holm may not carry the same weight as it did in the past. Holly, who has previously held titles in both UFC and boxing, has won only 5 out of her last 12 fights, with one ending in a No Contest. Nonetheless, she remains an experienced and skilled fighter, with a standing in the top five rankings.

Take this victory as a heads up to the other competitors in the division. Raquel Pennington's grip on the championship title may not last for much longer.