Another weekend of fisticuffs has come and gone, as UFC on FOX 20 went down last Saturday night (July 23, 2016) from inside United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
For complete coverage of the entire UFC on FOX 20: "Holm Vs. Shevchenko" fight card click here.
Plenty of fighters were left licking their wounds, including Gilbert Melendez, who was chopped down by striking sensation Edson Barboza en route to a unanimous decision loss (full video highlights here).
And Kailin Curran, who was choked out by hometown girl Felice Herrig in the very first round via rear-naked choke (see it again here).
But which fighter is suffering from the worst post-fight hangover now 48 hours removed from the show?
Holly Holm.
The former women's bantamweight champion looked to get back into the win column after coughing up her title to Miesha Tate earlier this year by taking on Valentina Shevchenko, who herself was coming off a loss to current division queen, Amanda Nunes.
Instead, "The Preacher's Daughter" found herself on the losing end yet again for only the second time of her career, as "Bullet" outstruck the former world boxing champion to earn a unanimous decision win.
For five rounds, it seemed Holm simply couldn't get going like she wanted, while Shevchenko found her timing and pounced when the time was right. Other than a first-round knockdown she suffered, Valentina pretty much had her way.
Not only did she pick up the biggest win of her mixed martial arts (MMA) career, but also shook up the division that has been in a state of flux since former champion Ronda Rousey dominated night in and night out. Not only has the title changed hands constantly, but top contenders are getting picked off, too.
Holm was expected to earn her shot at reclaiming her strap with a win, but now that she has another "L" on her resume, her road back to the title seems a bit further.
So where does she go from here?
Thankfully for Holm, there are plenty of options out there for her to start her road to redemption. She could always convince the powers that be to let her bang it out against Miesha Tate, a revenge fight she's been longing for since UFC 196.
And with "Cupcake" also coming off a loss, that bout makes sense.
But, the fight that is most likely is one against Cat Zingano. "Alpha" is also coming off a loss to Julianna Pena at UFC 200 a few weeks ago. And like Holm, it was her second straight crushing loss.
While a win won't do much to get her -- or Cat -- back into a title fight, it will slowly help her climb out of the huge hole she finds herself in.
Baby steps.
A loss, though, would be disastrous for her career. Either way, Holm needs a good comeback fight, and one against the former title contenders seems like a good fit.
Any objections?