Jiri Procházka is eyeing the title gold yet again. The former light heavyweight champion fights Aleksandar Rakic in the featured prelim of the historic UFC 300 event at the T-Mobile Arena. Prochazka won the light heavyweight title in 2022. Unfortunately, he vacated the title due to a severe shoulder injury. He returned towards the end of 2023 to fight for the title again, but it did not fare well for the Czech fighter.
Alex Pereira had bagged the vacant gold with a second-round TKO of Procházka. Many, including veteran Matt Brown, had said Prochazka deserved more time. Aljamain Sterling also called it an early stoppage by Marc Goddard. Procházka did not contest it. Four months later, Prochazka believed in challenging for the title again after defeating Rakic.
I believe after that last fight, after that early [stoppage] end, of the fight... if I win next week… I deserve the title shot... Jiri Procházka via The Schmo YT Channel
Prochazka has reminisced over costly errors that led to his loss against Alex Pereira. Hence, with a dominant performance over Aleksandar Rakic, he hopes to bounce back to the title contender spot. The Czech fighter has no option but to win to remain in the title picture. Prochazka might need to put on a winning streak before challenging for the title again if he loses.
His opponent, Rakic, makes a return since a TKO skid to Jan Blachowicz in May 2022. However, according to BetMGM, he is a betting favorite to the +115 underdog Jiri Prochazka. As such, Prochazka putting on a stellar performance against the betting favorite might put him closer to a title shot if not a No. 1 contenders bout.
Jiri Prochazka predicts a finish at UFC 300
Jiri Prochazka has very unorthodox striking skills. It has helped him win multiple bouts throughout his career. In the second round against Alex Pereira, his unorthodox movements and striking combination confused the Brazilian fighter. However, Pereira had a much stronger weapon in his arsenal.
Ahead of the UFC 300 battle, Prochazka talked to James Lynch about learning from the KO loss at UFC 295. The Czech fighter promised to finish Rakic in the upcoming bout. Prochazka revealed that he was working on his ground game to have an all-around skillset available during the fights. As such, he leaned towards his striking skills to give him an edge to defeat Rakic at UFC 300 but would not hesitate to get the finish on the ground as well.
He trains in the disciplines and techniques of 61-duel “Kensei” and philosopher Miyamoto Musashi. Hence, such a zen mentality is not uncommon for the Czech fighter. His loss to Alex Pereira in their vacant title fight snapped his 13-win fight streak. Hence, Prochazka is yearning to return to his glory days soon enough and is willing to give his all to the effort.
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