Jiri Prochazka gives immediate thoughts on Alex Pereira moving to light heavyweight
Since getting injured and being forced to vacate his title, the division has changed significantly and Jiri Prochazka has finally had a chance to process the news of former middleweight king Alex Pereira's arrival into his weight class.
The towering 205er was on a tear throughout the UFC and had just captured gold in an all-time classic clash against Glover Teixeira before suffering what is being labeled as "the worst shoulder injury" in the promotion's history. The fan-favorite is expected to make his return to the octagon toward the end of the year
In a recent interview, the European sensation spoke on Alex Pereira's move up to light heavyweight, insisting that it's good for the division to have high-caliber names join the ranks, saying:
"Nice stand-up style guy, a lot of skills, and I'm looking forward to seeing him in our division because he is high. He's very good for our division... I'm glad to see guys like him in our division because it's a new opportunity to show the best from us, because he's good."
Prochazka has only been in the UFC for three fights and has already established himself as must-watch TV. A huge debut finish of Volkan Oezdemir, a knockout-of-the-year against Dominick Reyes, and a future Hall-of-Fame war against the aforementioned Glover Teixeira make up his only fights in the company.
As the landscape continues to change, it's unclear who will be champion once 'Denisa' makes his return to the cage, but an instant title shot has been promised to him, according to the man himself.
Check out what Jiri Prochazka had to say about Alex Pereira's move to his division in the video below.
Who did Jiri Prochazka claim Alex Pereira should face in his UFC light heavyweight debut?
After announcing he would be making the move away from middleweight to focus on a light heavyweight run, fans began speculating as to who Alex Pereira should step into the octagon against first in his new weight class.
Although he seemed hesitant in his answer, Jiri Prochazka believes the second or third ranked fighter should be tasked with welcoming the Brazilian into his new home, which would currently be either Magomed Ankalaev or Jan Blachowicz.
While he'll need to earn his chance at fighting for gold, the South American is desperate to gain revenge for his good friend Teixeira and would love to get his hands on light heavyweight king Jamahal Hill.