Holly Holm

Holly Holm has been married to Jeff Kirkpatrick since 2012.

She is a devout Christian and is often seen carrying the Bible around.

Holly Rene Holm-Kirkpatrick was born as Holly Rene Holm, on 17th October 1981, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in the United States, to Roger, who was a preacher for a Christian movement named ‘Church of Christ’, and his wife Tammy, a massage therapist. It was because of her father’s profession that Holly received her nickname ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’. Holly is the youngest of the three children in her family and has two older brothers, Brian and Weston Holm.

She grew up near Bosque Farms, and she not only used to play soccer, but also participated in gymnastics, swimming, and diving. She completed her graduation from Manzono High School in 2000, after which she attended the University of New Mexico. However, she studied there only for a year.

She used to take Aerobics classes from the age of sixteen. Her instructor saw her potential as a fighter and soon he began training her.

Holly Holm achieved her first victory in September 2001, after winning the International Rules Adult Women’s Welterweight Division at the International Kickboxing Federation, held in Kansas City, Missouri.

She made her boxing debut in January 2002, and after five months, she also made her debut in kickboxing. Her boxing records include an astounding total of 33 wins with only 2 losses and 3 draws. In her boxing career, she won both the WBF Female World Light Welterweight, as well as the World Welterweight Titles. Holm is also an 18-time world champion across three world classes.

She made her debut in Mixed Martial Arts in March 2011. In December 2011, she fought French boxer Anne Sophie Mathis in pursuit of the vacant IBF female and WBAN welterweight titles. Holm suffered a terrible defeat. However, they had a rematch in June, the following year, where Holm managed to beat Mathis and emerge as the new champion.

In 2013, she took part in the Legacy Championship 21, where she faced Allana Jones. The fight resulted in a victory for Holm. She later faced Nikki Knudsen and Angela Hayes. Holm fought brilliantly and defeated both of them. She won her next fight against Juliana Werner, as well, though she broke her left arm in the first round of the bout.

She signed a deal with the UFC in 2014. Though her first match was scheduled against Raquel Pennington, Holm pulled out because of an undisclosed injury. Later, she fought Women’s Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey in November 2015. Though the latter put up a tough fight, Holm beat her and put an end to Rousey’s three-year reign as champion. Holly lost the title to Miesha Tate in March the following year.

Holly Holm played a significant role in the 2016 action film ‘Fight Valley’. Directed and written by Rob Hawk, the film also starred Susie Celek, Miesha Tate, Cris Cyborg and Amanda Serrano. The film was released on 22nd July 2016. It was met with mixed reviews from critics.