On the surface it would appear that Chris Holdsworth is doing well for himself. The bantamweight fighter won The Ultimate Fighter Season 18, is 2-0 in the UFC and has a perfect 6-0 record overall.
However, according to a new interview with MMAfighting.com the 27 year-old is currently battling the effects of a couple of concussions that have left him unsure when he’ll next step back into the Octagon.
Holdsworth reveals that he suffered a concussion in training prior to his TUF 18 Finale fight with Davey Grant back in late 2013, but it didn’t appear to be too serious and he managed to win by second round submission.
In training for his next fight just a few months later he suffered another concussion when his head slammed into a mat during wrestling practice and this one appeared to have a more significant impact on him, perhaps because it was his second one in a relatively short period of time.
Despite not feeling well as a result of this, Holdsworth opted to battle through it and didn’t pull out of his fight with Chico Camus back in May of last year. Again his gamble paid off to some extent in the cage as he claimed a unanimous decision victory, but he acknowledges that in some ways that decision may have done him more harm than good.
Holdsworth has suffered post-fight concussion syndrome symptoms such as eye strain and sensitivity to light and noise, and was unable to train for some time and even know isn’t back to sparring yet.
It’s been almost 10 months since Holdsworth last fought and at this stage it’s anyone’s guess how much longer it’ll be until he feels well enough to resume his promising career.
Holdsworth’s case mirrors that of UFC lightweight fighter TJ Grant who was all set to get a title shot in 2013 after a very impressive five fight winning streak, only to be forced to pull out after suffering a concussion in training.
Like Holdsworth, Grant experienced severe post-fight concussion syndrome symptoms to the extent that almost two years after his last fight the 31 year-old is still out of action.
It’s good that Holdsworth is listening to his body and isn’t trying to rush back prematurely and hopefully his road back to full fitness won’t be as gruelling as Grant’s has been. We’d certainly like to take this opportunity to wish him well.
