UFC middleweight Kevin Holland apprehends alleged thief after pursuit in car, on foot
When coach Shug Dorsey strolled out of his house in Saginaw, Texas, with his cup of morning Joe to head to the gym, he heard tires screeching in the distance.
That’s when he got an unexpected phone call from one of his fighters, UFC middleweight Kevin Holland, who sounded out of breath.
“Coach, are you up?” Holland asked.
“Yeah, I’m up,” Dorsey replied. “What’s going on?”
“I’m chasing a bad guy and I’m right near your house,” Holland said. “Yeah, somebody just stole a car and I’m following them.”
Dorsey pulled the phone away for a second and listened to the environment around him. Tires were still screeching in the distance.
“I could hear the cars turning corners,” Dorsey told MMA Junkie approximately one hour after the incident occurred Monday. “I asked him what streets he was on. He started telling me the streets. We joked that he was like a real cop, with us coordinating while he’s driving.”
With some follow-up questioning from his coach, Holland explained the situation. While pulling into a local gas station, Holland found himself driving into the midst of a panic while people screamed that a car was being stolen. Eyes locked on the target, Holland’s pursuit began.
After a few exchanges and coordinate discussions, Dorsey restarted the short walk to his car that had unexpectedly detoured. As he climbed in the car, a crash was audible on the other end of the call – and then silence.
Dorsey whipped down to where Holland had last relayed he was and sure enough, he found the UFC middleweight contender on top of the alleged car thief and recorded what he saw on his Instagram stories.
A lot was made about Holland’s ground game ahead of his UFC Fight Night 193 bout this past Saturday. While his fight vs. Kyle Daukaus was stopped short before a national audience could get a sample size of his wrestling abilities, Holland had no issue taking down the alleged thief, he told Dorsey. The man did not put up much of a struggle thereafter.
“He’s running the guy down and trips him,” Dorsey said. “He wrapped him up and held him until the cops get there.”
According to Dorsey’s second-hand account, the alleged thief crashed twice leading up to his apprehension. The first crash didn’t faze him and he backed out and drove down the road – only to crash again.
There wasn’t much discussion between the three of them before police and medics arrived, though there was a lengthy amount of time. Dorsey said he was not sure of the alleged thief’s motive.
“(Holland) didn’t get taken down, but he got a takedown,” Dorsey joked.
Overall, Dorsey said the action by Holland wasn’t unusual. Fans may see Holland as a brash trash-talker, but according to Dorsey, the action Holland took Monday is reflective of the type of person he is when the cameras aren’t rolling.
“He always does (things like this),” Dorsey said. “People only see certain things. People only see what’s put in the media. There’s been several instances where he’s helped people out. It’s nothing new to me. If he sees somebody in a bad situation, he’s going to render it.”
