Kayla Harrison signs with UFC, set to debut at UFC 300 against former champion Holly Holm

Blythe Haslett January 24, 2024

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Kayla Harrison signs with UFC, set to debut at UFC 300 against former champion Holly Holm

Kayla Harrison is a UFC fighter and will be making her debut at UFC 300.

UFC CEO Dana White announced on Tuesday night that the promotion has signed Harrison and she will debut at UFC 300 on April 13 against former bantamweight champ Holly Holm. The fight will also take place at bantamweight, which will be the first time Harrison competes at 135lbs in her MMA career.

The news caught many by surprise as most weren’t aware that Harrison was a free agent, but the two-time Olympic gold medalist has been linked to the UFC for quite some time and she will now finally fight in the promotion.

Kayla Harrison (16-1) is coming off a decision win over Aspen Ladd back in November after her stunning decision loss to Larissa Pacheco in the 2022 PFL women’s featherweight tournament finals. Harrison entered that fight as a massive betting favorite as she had already beaten Pacheco twice previously. In her MMA career, Harrison has notable wins over Cindy Dandois, Kaitlin Young, and Genah Fabian among others.

Holly Holm (15-6 and 1 NC) is coming off her main event fight against Mayra Bueno Silva last July in a fight she lost by submission. However, the fight was overturned to a No Contest after the Brazilian tested positive for ritalinic acid. Before that, Holm returned to the win column with a decision win over Yana Santos after a controversial main event decision loss to Ketlen Vieira.

Holm is currently ranked fifth at bantamweight and is the former champ, as she won the title back in 2015 with a KO win over Ronda Rousey. Holm has also challenged for the featherweight title twice but lost to Cris Cyborg and Germaine de Randamie. In her career, Holm has notable wins over Raquel Pennington, twice, Irene Aldana, and Bethe Correia.

With Kayla Harrison and Holly Holm official, UFC 300 is as follows: