Jiri Prochazka has renewed his interest in the possibility of moving down to middleweight.
Prochazka (30-5-1 MMA, 4-2 UFC) is coming off two knockout losses to light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira. Outside of Pereira, Prochazka has knocked out all four of his other UFC opponents.
Prochazka said he would be comfortable moving down to 185 pounds and that his decision to move down would depend on the outcome of the middleweight title bout between champion Dorricus du Plessis (22-2 MMA, 8-0 UFC) and Israel Adesanya at UFC 305. Du Plessis defeated Adesanya by submission in the fourth round.
“If Adesanya wins I will stay at light heavyweight, but if du Plessis wins I will follow him,” Prochazka said in Czech, as translated by his YouTube channel. “I will sort things out a bit there and take the belt, but the guys at light heavyweight are a bit heavier and I feel good and strong at light heavyweight.”
“Almost all of them. So physically, strength-wise, I have no problem beating them. But it’s definitely a challenge for me to go for the belt at middleweight and then move up. But I’ll just go with the flow and see what happens.”
If Prochaska stays at light heavyweight, he could face Jamahal Hill next, but that bout is not currently planned. Like Prochaska, Hill’s most recent fight was a knockout loss to Pereira.
“It’s interesting because there haven’t been any negotiations or discussions with the manager or anyone else yet,” Prochaska said. “I only sent one message on Hill as a tip, so I don’t know if there’s been any developments or if anyone leaked anything, but it’s all just speculation right now.”
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and other content with fellow mixed martial arts fans.