UFC welterweight Kevin Holland was dining with a couple of friends on Monday night at RA Sushi off of Westheimer in Highland Village in Southwest Houston when a man at the bar pulled a gun and fired a shot into the air.
The gunshot sent customers scurrying, while Holland and his friends took action by taking on the gunman, tackling & ultimately subduing him with a rear naked choke.
He tells ESPN, "as soon as he was [asleep], I let go of the choke, slid out on top, got full mount, stretched the arms out so he couldn't reach for anything."
The Houston Chronicle reports:
"No one was injured in the gunfire, although a woman who was with Holland scraped her hand while running for cover to the kitchen. Police eventually responded and put the gunman in handcuffs. On Tuesday, HPD identified the man as 24-year-old Jesus Edrai Cardiel Samaniego. He faces charges of deadly conduct and unlawfully carrying a weapon...
The 29-year-old Holland, who trains in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, has fought in the UFC for the past four years, going 9-4, including being featured twice in the main event. Holland last fought on March 5, knocking out Alex Oliveira at UFC 272."
Gotta love the merch he’s now selling.
Holland adds, “I wouldn't tell the next person to do it unless they're seriously trained for that type of situation. Besides doing cage fighting, I train self-defense first and foremost. For me, that was the best way to defend myself at the moment. Plus, I like Batman."
Holland must be Batman when he’s not in the cage because this is the second time in the past few months that he’s stop a criminal.
MMAJunkie.com reports that back in October, Holland chased down a suspected car thief and subdued him until police arrived.