UFC Hall of Famer Clay Guida still possesses a wrestling game that can frustrate opponents.
In Scott Holtzman’s final UFC bout, Guida (38-19 MMA, 18-16 UFC) leaned on what he does best to convince two of the three judges he was the winner, earning two 29-28 scores on the official scorecards. Holtzman (14-6 MMA, 7-6 UFC) made a solid account for himself in the striking department, but only one judge sided with his performance.
The lightweight bout was part of the UFC on ESPN 42 preliminary card at Amway Center in Orlando, Fla.
With the crowd chanting Guida’s name, the two lightweights got right into the action at the beginning of the fight. Holtzman took control of the center of the cage after the initial exchanges, looking to land big punches as Guida attempted to mix things up with kicks and takedowns.
In the second, Guida found early success in the clinch, as he pursued takedowns more aggressively. Holtzman gave up a few takedowns, but was able to get back up and separate without taking much damage. On the feet, Holtzman continued to win striking exchanges, but Guida stuck to his wrestling attack.
Clay Guida gets his 74th career takedown in the UFC👏 #UFCOrlando pic.twitter.com/aPgC3ellc8
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) December 4, 2022
Holtzman stepped on the gas early in the last round, landing nice punches as Guida waited for his chance to get back to the clinch, and did exactly that with a few big takedowns to control the final minutes of action. Although clearly frustrated, Holtzman was unable to mount significant offense in the final moments of the fight.
Guida’s wrestling attack convinced two of the official cageside judges that he did enough to win a split decision.
🗣 BY SPLIT DECISION!!!
The legend @ClayGuida is leaving #UFCOrlando with the W 💪 pic.twitter.com/R05usQTBIs
— UFC (@ufc) December 4, 2022
Guida returns to the win column after a first-round submission loss to Claudio Puelles in April. Prior to that setback, he locked up a submission of his own to defeat Leonardo Santos last December.
Holtzman, 39, who attempted to leave his gloves in the cage to signal his retirement, will walk away with seven wins under the UFC banner. “Hot Sauce” picked up victories over Cody Pfister, Michael McBride, Darrell Horcher, Alan Patrick, Dong Hyun Ma and Jim Miller.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 42 results include:
- Clay Guida def. Scott Holtzman via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Michael Johnson def. Marc Diakiese via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Jonathan Pearce def. Darren Elkins via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
- Natan Levy def. Genaro Valdez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Francis Marshall def. Marcelo Rojo via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 1:14
- Yazmin Jauregui def. Istela Nunes via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:06
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 42.
