Kevin Holland: I’m taking my talents to welterweight in 2022

It appears as if Kevin Holland will be heading to the welterweight division.

The 13-fight UFC veteran and one of the unanimous nominees for the 2020 Fighter of the Year took to Instagram on Wednesday and revealed that he’s heading down to the 170-pound division.

MMA Fighting subsequently confirmed the plans with Holland’s manager Oren Hodak, the president of KO Reps, on Friday.

The 29-year-old has competed before in the welterweight division but hasn’t done so since a unanimous decision loss to Curtis Millender at LFA 13 in June 2017.

Holland told MMA Fighting on multiple occasions throughout 2020 that he had his sights set on a move to 170 pounds — mostly for the opportunity to stay even more active, as well as a tool to push himself a little bit harder in training by adding an additional goal to each camp. “Trailblazer” was scheduled to compete at welterweight for the first time in the UFC in May 2020 before an injury scratched him from a scheduled matchup with Daniel Rodriguez.

After a 5-0 run in 2020, which included one of the best knockouts of the year for his first-round finish of Ronaldo Souza, Holland is winless over his last three, which includes decision losses to Derek Brunson and Marvin Vettori, and an October matchup with Kyle Daukaus that was ruled a no contest following an accidental headbutt.

Holland was slated to face Daukaus once again earlier this month before the Houston standout was forced out of the bout with an injury.