Kevin Holland Gets Spot on UFC 256 Bill, Meets ‘Jacare’ Souza on Dec. 12

Kevin Holland will get his chance to go 5-0 in 2020 after all.

After being removed from next weekend’s UFC on ESPN 19 main event due to a positive COVID-19 test, Holland will square off against Ronaldo Souza at UFC 256. The pairing was announced during the UFC on ESPN 18 broadcast Saturday night.

UFC 256 takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Dec. 12 and is headlined by a flyweight championship tilt pitting Deiveson Figueiredo against Brandon Moreno. “Jacare” was originally supposed to face Marvin Vettori, but Vettori was tabbed to step in for Holland against Jack Hermansson at UFC on ESPN 19.

So far this year, Holland has earned victories against Anthony Hernandez, Joaquin Buckley, Darren Stewart and Charlie Ontiveros — with three of those wins coming inside the distance. “Trailblazer” is 7-2 during his promotional tenure and 20-5 as a professional overall.

Souza, meanwhile, will return to 185 pounds after losing a split decision to Jan Blachowicz in a one-bout stint at light heavyweight at UFC Fight Night 164 in November 2019. The former Strikeforce middleweight champion has losts four of his last six promotional outings.