Dana White believes it’s “too soon” for Kevin Holland to retire from MMA: “I think the emotions got the best of him”

Dana White thinks Kevin Holland was too emotional when he announced his retirement from MMA.

After Holland suffered a first-round submission loss to Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 279, he took to Instagram a few days later to say he was retiring. He said he got in, got paid, and got out, but many didn’t think his retirement was true. Although it has yet to be announced that he isn’t retired, Dana White isn’t sure if ‘Trailblazer’ truly is done.

“We talked about that too. Obviously, you know I’m really close to this kid, and I like him a lot. I think when you are competing in a sport like this, and you’ve done the things that Kevin Holland has done,” White said about Holland to the media on Tuesday. “He gets out of the fight with (Derek) Brunson and realizes that he needs to work on his wrestling more. So he dives in and starts working on his wrestling, and I think when what happened to him happens to you, I think you lay in bed at night and go, holy s**t, how did that happen to me? He’s an emotional guy. I think the emotions got the best of him. Just take some time, get back in the gym and whatever he wants to do obviously, I love the kid, whatever he wants to do, he can do. But it’s a little too soon for him to retire.”

Even though Kevin Holland did lose to Khamzat Chimaev, he still could be a future top-10 welterweight. He took the fight on a day’s notice and many expected him to lose, so there is no shame in that. But, if he is done, he had a great career and was known for taking fights whenever they were offered and making quick turnarounds.

If this is it for Holland, he ends his career with a record of 23-8 and one No Contest and went 10-5 and one No Contest inside the UFC.

Do you think Kevin Holland is retired?