Most of the mixed martial arts (MMA) community was caught off guard when it was announced that Holly Holm -- and not Miesha Tate -- would get next crack at Ronda Rousey's Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women's Bantamweight strap.
More on that title fight here.
Then, once the shocker sank in, the predictions started rolling in, and the majority of them weren't in Holm's favor, as many predicted another fast and easy victory for "Rowdy."
During his conversation with MMA Junkie, Mike Dolce -- Rousey's weight management coach -- touched on both topics, saying he doesn't understand why Holly is getting bashed for receiving and accepting the title fight -- which wasn't her decision -- and says the title fight will be much more competitive than people think.
His words:
"It's a much more competitive fight than people would say. I see her getting bashed on the Internet. Who do you bash this young lady? Because she's worked her tail off to get where she's at. She's undefeated. She certainly deserves to be in the (title-picture) conversation. Now, to jump over Miesha for the title shot? That's a conversation. I think Miesha deserved to be the No. 1 contender or at least in that conversation. But having two cracks at Ronda already, I can see why Miesha was taken out of the equation and Holly was put in."
Despite not getting many votes of confidence from fans, "The Preacher's Daughter" isn't worrying about the politics that come with title fights.
That's because she's too preoccupied with putting her best foot forward and coming up with a master plan to become the first person to solve what seems to be an unsolvable puzzle in Rousey.
She has the skills and team behind to do it, but, can Holm and her famed stable of coaches put it all together to shock the world at UFC 195 on Jan. 2, 2015?