Mike Tyson's ex-coach weighs in on Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka fight at UFC 303: "You can't make mistakes"
Teddy Atlas, the former boxing coach of Mike Tyson, recently offered up his take on the upcoming Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka rematch at UFC 303. Pereira and Prochazka have stepped up to fill the main event slot following news that Conor McGregor is injured and out of his bout against Michael Chandler.
The two light heavyweight stars will run back their UFC 295 clash, which saw them compete for the then-vacant 205-pound title. On the night, 'Poatan' cemented himself in the history books when he finished 'BJP' in the second round, handing him his first loss in the UFC.
Since their first bout, Alex Pereira has gone on to defend the title against Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, knocking out the American in the first round. On the same night, Prochazka bounced back from his loss to the Brazilian by stopping Aleksandar Rakic via second-round TKO.
As the two striking masters prepare for war once again, Teddy Atlas weighed in on the rematch on the latest episode of his THE FIGHT podcast. According to the award-winning boxing coach, while the odds suggest the fight will be close, he's giving the edge to Pereira. He said:
"It's not gonna be an easy out for anyone but I'm still gonna go with the champ. I'm gonna go with the guy that punches the way he does. The thing with Pereira is you can't make mistakes. Prochazka could be winning the fight but one mistake and it's lights out."
Catch Atlas' comments here (1:32:10):
Alexander Volkanovski predicts Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka 2
Former UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski has also weighed in on the upcoming UFC 303 main event between Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka.
Speaking on a recent episode of mainevent on Fox Sports Australia, Volkanovski noted that both 'Poatan' and 'BJP' take big risks in the octagon, which the other may look to exploit. He explained:
"One thing about this fight as well, [they are] both massive risk takers. They both fight that fight. You have Jiri, who will put his head in danger and be happy to try and pull them out of range and then come back in."
Volkanovski continued:
"Alex Pereira, he literally puts his whole body, he'll be in range... Both very risky ways of fighting, both very exciting, works well for both of them... It's gonna be a lot of fireworks, I think they're both gonna hurt each other and then someone gets the knockout - first or second round. It's destined to happen."
Catch Volkanovski's comments here (2:30):