Jiří Procházka is confident a trilogy fight with his old foe Alex Pereira is inevitable after their wins at UFC 320.
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jiri Procházka had no intention of storming the cage and stealing the spotlight after UFC 320’s main event concluded on Saturday in Las Vegas. After delivering another unforgettable moment with his epic knockout of Khalil Rountree Jr., the Czech contender simply wanted to watch how the rest of the division’s title picture unfolded, with Alex Pereira ultimately reclaiming his belt against Magomed Ankalaev in a bout that gave Prochazka plenty to think about.
In a uniquely personal moment, Pereira’s quick 80-second knockout of Ankalaev appeared to nearly bring his two-time rival to tears, as Procházka was caught on camera seemingly holding back his emotions after the finish. Procházka revealed on Monday’s edition of “The Ariel Helwani Show” that his viral reaction did indeed stem from Pereira's performance, but also from his own goals becoming clearer.
“There was no bad wish or whatever,” Procházka told Uncrowned. “I just, like every time, want to see the best fight. Let the better [man] win. But inside myself, maybe I wished more [that] Alex [would win] because all this bulls*** with what Ankalaev said.”
Procházka's comments refer to several online back-and-forths with Ankalaev and his camp this past year. Although the two haven’t shared the Octagon, Procházka didn’t forget what he considered to be needless trash talk since Ankalaev won the title in March. Still, Procházka emphasized that he wasn’t invested in seeing anyone lose — only that the situation offered a clearer picture of where he stands in the division.
“It’s not that I was so happy Alex won or Ankalaev lost,” Procházka said. “I was so emotional because, in that moment, I really realized that Pereira won and there is a potential fight between me and him. That means there is a third fight. Third chance for me to be successful. I deeply realized, 'Man, this is something you have to win, or nothing.' That will be the biggest challenge of my life.
"F***, man, I really want to win. I know I’m taking a lot of risks in my fights, but I know I will find a way.”
Procházka has already faced Pereira twice in title bouts in the past, most recently in June 2024 at UFC 303. In both instances, Pereira won by knockout. While those results leave Procházka at an expected disadvantage in a hypothetical trilogy, "BJP" remains one of the few fighters to have consistently pushed Pereira in extended exchanges. Watching the champion defend and reclaim the belt in the time since their fights only reaffirmed what’s still possible, Procházka said — the chance to get a win in their rivalry.
[Yahoo Sports TV is here! Watch live shows and highlights 24/7]
Procházka relationship with the now-former champ, however, remains strained. Procházka said despite a polite in-person exchange with Ankalaev at the UFC Performance Institute, he hasn’t forgotten what was said online.
“I don’t like to speak with him, because he has to be responsible for all his tweets,” Procházka said. “Even when I met him in the UFC P.I., and he said 'hi' like normal — all my team just watched him, what he just did. He tried to say hello like nothing, like there wasn’t anything what he wrote on Twitter. Then I really realized, maybe it’s all these guys around him — I don’t know if his manager or who wrote these tweets, all these bulls***s. He’s like a normal sportsman, but the guys around him, they do this dirty work.
“Before [the] Khalil Rountree [fight], I was already prepared to go to his manager or to Ankalaev, and tell him, ‘What the f*** was this s*** what you spoke about? Why? Why you did that? I didn’t attack you with anything. So why you spoke this bulls***?’ And my coach told me to really calm down, 'Our fight is Khalil Rountree right now, and let’s be focused just for this one. Don’t be focused for anybody else.' So I just kept that and I’m happy I did that. I don’t like to be focused [on] anyone else before the fight.”
Procházka’s win over Rountree earned him an additional $100,000 paycheck in UFC post-fight bonuses — he took both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night honors. On top of that, the former champion believes he’s earned a spot back in title contention. For Procházka, a championship opportunity makes the most sense next in his mind — no matter who stands across from him.
“I really want to fight for the title. I don’t care who will be my opponent,” he said. “I’m not locked on just one thing. But let that be whoever — I believe I will go through them.
"There was a possibility to fight for the title in June with Ankalaev, and I declined it because of [attending] university [for my master's degree]. And right now, I won my last fight with Khalil. So right now, I believe logically there is a chance to go for the title [next].”
Before he landed the Rountree matchup, Procházka also recalled receiving an offer for a potential bout with fellow top contender Carlos Ulberg, which ultimately fell through. As a result, Ulberg recently continued his own run of success when he took on Dominick Reyes at UFC Perth in September.
Ulberg’s first-round starching of Reyes extended his win streak to nine and put him as the frontrunner to compete for light heavyweight gold. Yet despite both Ulberg and Procházka sitting atop the contender list, Pereira expressed an interest moving to heavyweight after his UFC 320 win. If that happens and Pereira vacates his title, Procházka won't be opposed to a collision with Ulberg for a vacant belt.
“After my final exams in June, there was an offer for Ulberg in Australia. I accept that,” Procházka said. “He declined that because of — I don’t know, whatever. Then, I accept Rountree, and in the same time, he accepted Reyes.
“I don’t want to choose my opponent. I already confirmed Ulberg, then I confirmed Rountree — so for me, right now, if you want to be the champion, you have to go through everyone.”
Category: General Sports
