Jamahal Hill Vs. Khalil Rountree Jr. Preview

Jamahal Hill faces Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC Baku as we preview this upcoming fight. 

The event marks the first time the UFC will be in Azerbaijan, following the initial relocation from Kansas City after Hill suffered an injury. Hill enters into the fight on the back end of a two-fight losing streak. He was forced to vacate his light heavyweight title after suffering an injury after which he lost to Alex Pereira and Jiri Prochazka. Now, he has the chance to face Rountree after their previous fight in 2024 was called off due to Rountree’s failed test. 

Meanwhile, Rountree enters the fight after having been knocked out by Pereira in his last fight. The defeat ended his five-fight win streak, as Rountree has not been in the Octagon since then. The winner moves a step closer to securing a title shot against the current champion, Magomed Ankalaev, whose next fight is uncertain as the Pereira rematch is not guaranteed. 

Preview

“Let’s not disrespect him, but I just don’t see him on my level. He can hit you with some big shots, and he’s never going to stop, and never going to quit and give up. There ain’t no back down from him. … I haven’t seen anything from anything that makes me think, ‘This dude is on your level.’ Is he dangerous to anybody? It’s a fight. In a fight, anybody can land a shot, and that makes them dangerous and can change the fight. He has my respect in that regard, but to think skill-for-skill he can match with me? I don’t see it that,” Hill said

“There hasn’t been too much talk; there have been talks of what we would like after this. I think the UFC has its own ideas and thoughts of what they would want. My plan is to put on a performance that makes a title shot undeniable, if that makes any sense. I’m ready to be a champion and the champion. Everything I’m working on and doing is to be prepared for that again. That is absolutely what I want and what I am gunning for. My plan is to put on an undeniable performance so that I can get that chance again,” Rountree said 

Full Card

Jamahal Hill Vs. Khalil Rountree Jr.

Rafael Fiziev vs Ignacio Bahamondes

Curtis Blaydes vs Rizvan Kuniev

Tofiq Musayev vs Myktybek Orolbai

Nazim Sadykhov vs Nikolas Motta

Muhammad Naimov vs Bogdan Grad

Prelims

SeokHyun Ko vs Oban Elliott

Ismail Naurdiev vs JunYong Park

Daria Zhelezniakova vs Melissa Mullins

Irina Alekseeva vs Klaudia Sygula

Tagir Ulanbekov vs Azat Maksum

Hamdy Abdelwahab vs Mohammed Usman