"He finds the wins" - Former UFC champ backs Jiri Prochazka against Alex Pereira at UFC 295
Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker has weighed in on the upcoming light heavyweight title bout between Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira.
Prochazka and Pereira are set to headline UFC 295 this weekend on November 11 at Madison Square Garden. Their bout was pushed to the headline slot following the news of Jon Jones' injury.
The bout marks a return to action for 'Denisa', who hasn't fought since he defeated Glover Texieira in their Fight of the Year clash at UFC 275 last June. He was then due to defend the title in a rematch against the Brazilian in December 2022, but vacated the belt after suffering a significant shoulder injury.
For Pereira, the kickboxing maestro earned his title shot by narrowly defeating Jan Blachowicz via split decision in his light heavyweight debut. The 36-year-old is now preparing for his third title in just his seventh UFC appearance, having previously won and lost the middleweight title against Israel Adesanya.
Ahead of Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira's clash next weekend, Robert Whittaker recently offered his take on the mouth-watering matchup during an episode of the MMArcade Podcast.
According to 'The Reaper', whilst he recognizes Pereira as one of the UFC's top strikers, Jiri Prochazka has consistently proved his willingness and desire to win time and time again.
He explained:
"Jiri has the uncanny ability to find the win in these fights. In these harder fights, he looks to be outclassed but he finds the wins....Jiri has got such unorthodox striking and can see kill shots that he goes for instinctually. I'm very curious to see how this fight plays out."
Catch Whittaker's comments here (15:20):
Jamahal Hill predicts outcome of Jiri Prochazka vs. Alex Pereira
Former UFC light heavyweight champ Jamahal Hill has offered his prediction for the upcoming title bout between Jiri Prochazka and Alex Pereira.
Following Prochazka's shoulder injury last year and his relinquishing of the belt, Jamahal Hill stepped in to face Glover Teixeira. 'Sweet Dreams' then dominated the Brazilian over the course of the five rounds to win the title.
Unfortunately, the American suffered the same fate as 'Denisa' earlier this year by sustaining an injury that forced him to vacate the title.
During a recent interview with The Schmo, Jamahal Hill gave his thoughts on the upcoming light heavyweight clash. According to the former champ, he sees either a knockout win for Pereira or a submission victory for Prochazka. He said:
"I don't know if it ends with a knockout, but I see a way where both men could land and end it with a knockout. I think the knockout is more probable for Alex Pereira. I think if Jiri Prochazka wants to end it within the distance it probably be submission."
Catch Hill's comments here (2:25):