Holly Holm is trying to work her way back to another title shot.
Holm is expected to face Mayra Bueno Silva in a bantamweight main event of the UFC’s yet-to-be-announced July 15th card. Bueno Silva was originally supposed to face Miesha Tate at UFC Vegas 74 later this month, but a hand injury to Tate forced her out of the bout and led to the UFC booking Bueno Silva against Holm.
The matchup was first reported by MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani on Wednesday’s episode of The MMA Hour. MMA Fighting previously reported that a welterweight matchup between Rafael dos Anjos and Vicente Luque was expected to headline the summer event; it’s unclear at the time of this writing whether that bout has been shifted to co-headliner status.
A former UFC bantamweight champion and boxing Hall of Famer, Holm has had an up-and-down run since losing the title, making a failed move up to featherweight to pursue a second belt, and then losing in her return title shot back down at 135 pounds. Most recently, the 41-year-old took home a unanimous decision win over Yana Santos at UFC San Antonio, keeping her firmly entrenched in the No. 3 spot in the UFC’s bantamweight rankings.
The UFC’s latest booking is a big opportunity for Bueno Silva, who has excelled since moving back up to bantamweight last year, stringing together three consecutive wins in the division, the last two by finish. Currently the No. 10 ranked bantamweight, Bueno Silva now has an opportunity to stake her claim for a title shot at 135 pounds.
Previously announced fights for the card include a welterweight matchup between Vicente Luque and Rafael dos Anjos, a heavyweight tilt between Walt Harris and Josh Parisian, a women’s featherweight bout between Norma Dumont and Chelsea Chandler, and another women’s bantamweight matchup between Ashlee Evans-Smith and Ailin Perez.
Damon Martin contributed to this report.
