Jiri Prochazka issues warning to Alex Pereira ahead of UFC 295 title fight: ‘The champion will rise again’
Jiri Prochazka is more than ready to run through another Brazilian if it means reclaiming the light heavyweight title.
On Wednesday, UFC CEO Dana White made a series of blockbuster announcements regarding the promotion’s last two pay-per-views of the year. On November 11, former light heavyweight champion Jiri Prochazka will return to the Octagon for the first time in nearly a year in a bid to regain the 205-pound title that he never lost. Standing in his way will be Brazilian knockout artist and former middleweight champion, Alex Pereira.
The pair will feature in the co-main event of UFC 295, emanating from the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden.
In June 2022, Jiri Prochazka captured the light heavyweight title in an instant classic with the former champion Glover Teixeira at UFC 275. The two fighters were set to run it back in December, but ‘Denisa’ suffered a shoulder injury that took him out of the fight, forcing him to vacate the 205-pound crown.
With the belt once again vacated following an injury sustained by Prochazka’s successor, Jamahal Hill, ‘Denisa’ will have the opportunity to make things right and once again claim the light heavyweight title.
Jiri Prochazka Will Be Ready for a Fight with Glover Teixeira’s Protégé
Meeting Jiri Prochazka in the co-main clash is Alex Pereira, a heavy-hitting Brazilian who has forged a close relationship with Prochazka’s last opponent, Glover Teixeira. The recently retired Teixeira will undoubtedly be in Pereira’s corner come UFC 295, giving Prochazka not one, but two Brazilian baddies to contend with in his highly anticipated return.
“I am glad to be able to face this Brazilian challenge again, even if in a different coat,” Prochazka wrote on X. “But that doesn’t change the fact that I will prepare well for this challenge and go for the win. It’s not just about the belt anymore, it’s about the performance and the path to victory.”
Making his Octagon debut in the summer of 2020, Jiri Prochazka only needed two big wins over Volkan Oezdemir and Dominick Reyes to secure his first shot at the light heavyweight title. Submitting Teixeira in a back-and-forth war to capture the crown, his title reign was cut frustratingly short after suffering a devastating shoulder injury.
‘Denisa’ goes into his second UFC title tilt with a 3-0 record inside the Octagon and 11-1 overall. Prochazka is almost eight years removed from his last defeat. He’ll look to keep that streak alive when he meets former GLORY Kickboxing world champion Alex Pereira at MSG in NYC this November.
