Daniel Cormier Believes Jiri Prochazka’s ‘Ring Rust’ will loom large in UFC 295 title tilt against Alex Pereira
Jiri Prochazka returns to the Octagon nearly 18 months removed from his instant classic with Glover Teixeira at UFC 275.
‘Denisa’ captured the light heavyweight title that night, securing a fifth-round submission over Teixeira in a back-and-forth Fight of the Year contender. Unfortunately, Prochazka never had the opportunity to defend his title. Instead, he opted to vacate the championship after sustaining a shoulder injury that would require surgery to repair. More than a year later, Prochazka is once again healthy and ready to reclaim the gold that he never technically lost.
Standing in his way will be Alex Pereira, an accomplished kickboxer who has already claimed one UFC title courtesy of a stunning knockout against Israel Adesanya last year.
Offering his take on the highly anticipated title tilt at UFC 295, Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier recognizes that Prochazka is a special athlete, having captured a championship just two fights into his run with the promotion.
“He has not been here long, so for him to have been UFC champion in such a short period of time tells you how special of a talent he is,” Cormier said during a recent episode of DC&RC. “But, with him winning as he did, with a lot of frequency that he was in the Octagon, I believe that that consistency helped him to where he was able to get that UFC championship belt” (h/t MMA Mania).
Prochazka’s Lengthy Layoff Could Be the deciding factor at uFC 295
With that said, Daniel Cormier is not convinced that Prochazka will be 100 percent when he steps inside the Octagon on Saturday night. Even if ‘Denisa’ can go physically, Cormier believes that the lengthy layoff will be a big factor in the high-stakes affair.
“I think that this layoff is going to hurt him,” Cormier claimed. “But, for Jiri, it’s got to feel like playing with the house’s money because he was supposed to be gone for another four months, 18 months. He got hurt last year. This guy is back in 15 months. They were saying 18 months until he was able to do anything. So, now he’s back fighting for the belt, but I do believe that this ring rust is going to play a factor, especially early.”
In the time since Jiri Prochazka’s last fight, Alex Pereira has competed four times, scoring wins over Sean Strickland and Israel Adesanya before venturing to the land of 205 for a light heavyweight clash with former division champion Jan Blachowicz. ‘Poatan’ escaped with a split decision victory over the Polish powerhouse, setting the stage for a scrap with Prochazka under the bright lights of the world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden.
“Alex Pereira has been very active,” Cormier added.
