UFC Vegas 22 Final Fight Stats: Derek Brunson’s wrestling too much for Kevin Holland

Kevin Holland had all the confidence in the world heading into his middleweight matchup against Derek Brunson. That self-assurance slowly faded throughout the five-round fight. By the time the referee raised Brunson’s hand in victory, it seemed as if Holland was the only one convinced the fight was not a disaster for him.

Brunson’s win over Holland gives him two straight wins over opponents the UFC had seemingly selected for greatness. Holland was on a five-fight winning streak heading into this bout and had climbed to No. 10 in the 185-pound rankings. In August, Brunson ended the 11-fight winning streak of Edmen Shahbazyan.In that bout, Brunson handed the young upstart his first career defeat, when he stopped Shahbazyan by TKO in the third round.

Brunson’s wrestling and top control were the difference makers in the Holland fight. He racked up six takedowns on 12 attempts and earned control time of nearly 17 minutes during the 25-minute matchup. Holland’s one takeaway from the fight was that he earned a takedown on Brunson, which no other UFC fighter had ever done. The takedown came in the fifth round when the bout was all but decided.

After the win, Brunson called for a matchup against former title challenger Paulo Costa. Brunson is now on a four-fight winning streak.

UFC Vegas 22 took place at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. ESPN broadcast the card and the event streamed on ESPN+.

Below are the final fight stats for the main event of UFC Vegas 22.