Alex Pereira retained his light heavyweight title with a first-round knockout of Jamahal Hill at UFC 300, despite a low kick from Hill that appeared to make contact with Pereira’s groin.
Alex Pereira? Yeah, he’s not one to let a minor foul mess up his game. He’s all about those highlight-reel finishes, you know?
He held onto his light heavyweight title like a boss. How? With a savage first-round knockout of Jamahal Hill. This went down at UFC 300 on Saturday, right there in the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Pereira adding another knockout to his record isn’t news, but this one? It was something else.
So, Pereira was seen kinda brushing off referee Herb Dean. The ref was about to step in, address a low kick from Hill that seemed to hit Pereira’s groin. But a few seconds later, Pereira floored Hill with a left hand and finished him off with ground punches.
Why didn’t Pereira pause when he got hit by an illegal strike? He didn’t want to mess up his rhythm. Simple as that.
“I was starting to find my distance,” Pereira explained at the post-fight press conference. He was speaking through a Portuguese translator. “I started using leg kicks from the beginning so I could find his distance. He’s a southpaw, so it’s a little harder.”
His game plan? Start throwing hands after that. So when Hill threw the groin shot, Pereira didn’t feel much pain. He decided to keep pushing, not wanting to reset the distance. “Capitalize on the moment,” he said.
This win? It’s Pereira’s third in a row. It’s another chapter in his unique MMA career. He’s gone from a two-division Glory Kickboxing champ to a two-division UFC champ in less than four years. Pereira defeated Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295, capturing the light heavyweight belt that Hill had to vacate due to injury.
Hill? He was sidelined but kept his eye on the title. He often hinted at wanting to fight for the title when he returned. The tension between Pereira and Hill reached a high point at a press conference last Thursday. Hill smashed a stone head, a symbol of Pereira’s brand. That’s a no-no.
Pereira’s response? A celebratory pose that went viral.
“I spoke with my team before that I wanted to fight five rounds, but if the knockout happened, that’s what I was going to do,” Pereira said. “He behaved not so good. He started respectful during the week and then he did what he did during the press conference and the weigh-ins, so honestly the least that I could do was just that to him.”
Another interesting bit? Pereira’s close friendship with coach Glover Teixeira. Hill defeated Teixeira to become the UFC light heavyweight champion in January 2023. Pereira and Hill had a memorable stare-down inside the cage after Hill’s win. But Pereira insists he wasn’t out for revenge at UFC 300.
“No, I came here focused to fight him,” Pereira said. “No revenge, no nothing in my head. I believe that when you take things so much to the heart, you end up screwing it up. So I came here just like if Jamahal had never fought Glover before.”