UFC fighter's comment to rival in the middle of a fight speaks volumes about why he lost
Michael 'Venom' Page is set to return to the cage to face Sharapudtin Magomedov in Saudi Arabia, and the Brit has opened up on his bizarre promotional debut against Kevin Holland
Michael 'Venom' Page was left perplexed mid-fight when Kevin Holland told him he looked "moisturised" during their UFC clash.
The 37-year-old Brit, famous for his flamboyant style in the Octagon and keeping his hands low while playfully mocking his rivals, grabbed headlines in Bellator before moving over to the world of the UFC. And the MMA community buzzed with anticipation for his 2024 debut with Holland - a fellow fighter known for trash-talking inside the cage.
Holland's mid-fight banter is legendary among MMA enthusiasts - like the time he asked Will Santiago Jr about sparring with Jon Jones or when he mused to Jacare Souza during a ground-and-pound: "I swear I had a dream about this." Although he seemed mostly concentrated on MVP's unique movements and quick strikes during their faceoff at Florida's Kaseya Centre last March, he still managed a moment of humor.
In an exclusive chat with Mirror Fighting ahead of his bout with Sharapudtin Magomedov on Saturday, Page said: "Yeah, I think sometimes all you've got to do is if you focus on the other person, it can kind of throw you off. I think that's potentially what had happened to him.
"He was focused so much on me that he wasn't really able to pull off the normal Kevin Holland that we normally see. He wasn't talking as much, we went the whole distance and you didn't really hear him say anything. We had one exchange, and he was talking about how moisturised I was - random.
"But yeah, that was it. He definitely wasn't doing what he would normally do, and I think he was so focused and frustrated by trying to figure out what was going on in front of him that it stopped him from being himself. So yeah, I just went in there and was focused on me just being the best me that I could possibly be, and it allowed me to continue expressing myself in the same way."
Despite arguably winning in the chatting department, Holland ultimately lost the fight via unanimous decision after three hard-fought rounds. He initially fought under the UFC banner on Dana White's Contender Series in June 2018, besting the aforementioned Santiago Jr via unanimous decision - but the organization's president decided not to award him a contract in the big leagues due to his tendency to chat.
Speaking about his decision in the past, White explained: "He was a talented guy and he won his fight, but he wouldn't shut up. The entire fight he was talking to me. The whole fight. Now, any of you that have been to Las Vegas and have been to the Contender Series, it's straight killers, okay? Everybody comes into that building and...I could do that every Tuesday for the rest of my life. It's incredible, I love it.
"This guy comes in, and is talking s--- the entire fight, so I said, 'I'm not signing this guy. I don't want him, I'm not interested in him'." But the UFC president's stance softened when Thiago Santos needed a new opponent for UFC 277 the next month. After several fighters declined the match, White thought of giving Holland another shot.
He recounted: "I said, 'Call Big Mouth. I wanna see if Big Mouth takes this fight'. Took the fight, came in and fought the fight, still talking s---, okay? In there with Thiago Santos - this beast ranked number 13 in the world. Took this fight on two weeks notice and is still talking. Talking so much his mouth piece fell out twice. But wow he looked good."
Since then, Holland has remained with UFC, squaring off against fighters like Khamzat Chimaev, Michael Chiesa, Marvin Vettori, and Page. MVP, on the other hand, has only had a couple of bouts under the UFC banner after rising to prominence in Bellator.
After a mixed start in his UFC career, with a win over Holland followed by a unanimous decision loss to Ian Garry, the fighter is eager to turn things around and enhance his 22-3 record as he faces off against Dagestani sensation Magomedov in Saudi Arabia. Discussing his opponent's abilities, he said: "He's an exceptional fighter, really fun style to watch. Really explosive and powerful.
"Again, I just feel my combat style is one that just frustrates many. People struggle with my timing, how I can offset and mess up their timing. How I can land shots, how accurate I am at landing shots, how difficult it is to land a shot on me. All of those things fused together just makes for a frustrating night for most people, and then usually I find that one shot that will put them away. So that's exactly how I see it going."