Oh boy, get ready for Uglyman Joe 2.0 in a couple decades, but for now, it’s dad’s job to do the fighting, and while he’s not exactly where he wants to be after going 1-2 in his first three trips to the Octagon, he was able to put his October loss to Junyong Park in the rearview mirror and move on…well, after a little bit of reflection.
“It took a lot of time in my own head to realize I got finished for the first time,” said Holmes, who was submitted in the second round. “I’ve been beaten on two decisions, but never got murdered out there. So it took me a little bit of time to think about it and process it and look at where I went wrong and things like that. And hats off to Junyong Park – he’s a beast and I’m honored to have got to experience that with him. I feel now since then I’ve gotten a lot better as far as the things I’m looking for in my rounds and just the different things I’m trying to work on as an athlete and a fighter.”
The 27-year-old is confident that a move to .500 this Saturday against Claudio Ribeiro will get his 2023 campaign off to a good start and put him on the right path. After that, the only direction is up.
“Things are coming together,” said Holmes. “I hired a guy who really resembles my opponent – same height, same build, same style – to come over and spar with me. We got some rounds in and, man, I feel amazing after those rounds. So yeah, I think things are coming together. I do feel like my skillset belongs at this level, and I don’t think that my last fight defines me. I think that all of my fights define me and this fight’s just another notch in my belt for me to show where I belong.”