MMA fighter Jiri Prochazka is looking forward to fighting Alex Pereira and regaining his light heavyweight title, which he vacated due to an injury, and his training is now fully focused on this goal.
Jiri Prochazka is hopeful for a comeback before 2023 comes to a close, aiming to re-attain the title he never lost within the octagon. Following UFC 291, where Alex Pereira triumphed over Jan Blachowicz in the fight declared as a title eliminator by UFC president Dana White, it began to seem evident that Prochazka and Pereira were set to contend for the light heavyweight belt that was now vacant. Believing the fight to be an exciting match for the fans, Prochazka is keen on the match happening within this year with his previously injured shoulder reaching a full recovery.
In an interview in a recent episode of The MMA Hour, Prochazka expressed, “That’s my next fight, [it] will be [for] the title. I think that Alex is the [opponent], [and has] a very good chance to show the world a good title fight. And I’d like to see him as my opponent in my next fight.” He iscurrently focusing on his technical camp and is uninformed about the scheduled date for the fight. He expressed his eagerness to fight this year and is open for talks about setting the date and venue for the upcoming fight.
Prochazka was not partial towards any fighters while observing the title eliminator at UFC 291. He relinquished the title after a shoulder injury earlier than his planned rematch with the now-retired Glover Teixeira at UFC 282 the previous December, who happened to be his prior conquest for the title. Teixeira is also one of Pereira’s main trainers and mentors who aided the Brazilian’s transition from kickboxing to MMA. After a recent conversation with Teixeira, Prochazka is now looking forward to his face-off with Pereira, to possibly score two victories over the pair. Regarding his upcoming match, Prochazka commented, “For me, it doesn’t matter who is the opponent.” After recent exchanges with Glover, Jiri reaffirmed his desire to compete against Pereira since a rematch with Glover seems improbable. Pereira, being Glover’s successor, presents a more stand-up version of the fight drawing Prochazka’s interest.