After a delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Holly Holm
was inducted into the New
Mexico Sports Hall of Fame on Monday night.
Holm, a former UFC bantamweight champion who is from Albuquerque,
N.M., was part of the 2019 class that was
supposed to be enshrined one year earlier. Holm posted photos
of the ceremony, which she attended with her family, longtime coach
Mike Winkeljohn and manager Lenny Fresquez.
“Tonight I was inducted into the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame. I
am honored and humbled,” Holm wrote on Instagram. “I truly
appreciate everyone who has supported me in my journey thus far. My
family, friends, coaches, manager, teammates and of course all of
my fans. Thank you for believing in me in this journey and taking
this ride with me. I am only more motivated to keep pushing to
succeed and strive for greatness. I want to continue to make you
all proud of me. It is impossible to put in words how much love I
feel everyday. Here’s to aiming high. I am still striving to be the
best I can be. Thank you to my team! Thank you to my fans! Thank
you to my city! Thank you to my state!”
Before she tested the waters in MMA, Holm was already a beloved
athlete in her home state for a boxing career that saw her compile
a 33-2-3 record and capture multiple championships. “The Preacher’s
Daughter” reached a new level of fame when she knocked out the
previously undefeated Ronda
Rousey at UFC 193 to claim the 135-pound belt. Though she would
lose the crown one bout later, the Jackson-Wink MMA standout has
enjoyed a successful promotional tenure that includes triumphs over
Bethe
Correia, Marion
Reneau, Raquel
Pennington (twice), Megan
Anderson and Irene
Aldana.
Holm is scheduled to return to the Octagon in a featherweight bout
against Norma
Dumont at UFC Fight Night on Oct. 16. She has been victorious
in three of her last four bouts.