Kevin Holland really wants a rematch with Daniel Rodriguez.
The two Welterweight veterans threw down last summer, putting on a very entertaining brawl at UFC 318. After 15 minutes, however, “D-Rod” secured the upset win and broke Holland’s win streak. Holland is no stranger to the occasional loss, but he feels that was a particularly winnable fight and would like to get it back at some point.
Unfortunately, nobody knows where Daniel Rodriguez has been since their July 2025 clash.
For a long time, Rodriguez
was radio silent. He wasn’t posting on social media, chatting with journalists, or even appearing in the photos of teammates. All sorts of rumors popped up, as some alleged Rodriguez was in prison, stranded in Mexico, or both. Unfortunately, there was never any official confirmation from Rodriguez, his management, or the UFC about his whereabouts.
In the last week, however, “D-Rod” returned to social media and is scheduled to appear as a guest at a tattoo shop in southern California this coming weekend.
Holland is taking credit for Rodriguez’s reappearance. According to “Trailblazer,” he bailed out his former foe so that the two can tango once more after Rodriguez’s alleged probation ends.
“I bailed him out man,” Holland told Full Send MMA. “I needed to get this dub right here and then I needed to fight ”D-Rod” so I had to bail him out. He can get through this probation period and then when it’s time for me to fight again, he’ll be ready … I went back and watched that fight, I don’t know how the f—k I lost. Run that back two or three more times. It was a fun fight too, the fans had a blast. We had blood in the Octagon, we had knockdowns, all the good stuff.“
Is this the truth of Daniel Rodriguez or a “Big Mouth” tall tale? It’s hard to say given how tight-lipped details about Rodriguez have been in the last six months. Regardless, Holland is certainly very serious about his rematch and fully intends to call out “D-Rod” in the Octagon.
Before he gets that opportunity, he’ll have to take out fellow striker Randy Brown on the UFC 327 “Prelims.”
