UFC 303: Alex Pereira delivers devastating second-round knockout victory over Jiri Prochazka in Las Vegas
ByTNT Sports
Updated 30/06/2024 at 10:53 GMT+1
UFC 303 certainly delivered the drama in Las Vegas, Nevada with some stunning performances across the card - none more impressive than Alex Pereira's ferocious second-round technical knockout victory over Jiri Prochazka that later prompted the Brazilian to admit that he is happy to take on the challenge of striving to be the first three-division champion as his next pursuit.
UFC 303 Highlights as Pereira KOs Prochazka in style
Alex Pereira's legend continued to grow with a devastating second-round technical knockout victory over Jiri Prochazka at UFC 303.
The rematch from the fight in November, which saw the same result, was a much more one-sided affair with Pereira tagging Prochazka repeatedly in the first round, before landing a left hook on the buzzer which would have ended the bout if it had come just a few seconds earlier.
Prochazka resumed, still shaky, and was caught with a left-footed head kick which put the Czech fighter down and, after some spurious shots from the Brazilian, the referee stepped in.
Pereira spoke in the aftermath of his victory and delighted fans by revealing that he was happy to again change weight in pursuit of further glory.
“I didn’t know how I was gonna win, but I knew I was gonna come here and leave this Octagon happy," he said.
The Brazilian then hinted at his weight-class change.
He explained: “I think [heavyweight] is in my future. There didn’t seem to be too much interest in the organisation, but I’m here. I think that's in my future.
"I say it a lot. I'm here, I'm available and I think that's in my future. These are the people [the fans] paying for this, so if it’s what they want, I think it’s inevitable.”
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'It's in my future' - Pereira aiming to be three-division champion
Speaking at the post-fight press conference, UFC head Dana White seemed open to giving in-form Magomed Ankalaev a shot against Pereira next.
“Maybe, I don’t know, we’ll see. I like it, well there you go. Yeah,” he ultimately acquiesced.
He then pointed out that Pereira might wish to move up the weight classes, but there were challenges still to come at 205lbs, and he noted that the size of heavyweight opponents is a stark increase from his current frame.
He explained: “If he cleaned out the division and there was literally nobody left to fight, and he’s 37 and he wants to move up to heavyweight, but that’s not the case.
“He was 230 today, Chuck [Lidell] and Forrest Griffin used to walk around at 230, and they would cut down to 2054. That's not big. Some of these heavyweights are cutting to 265. It’s just a whole nother level.”
Lopes triumphs over late replacement Ige
In the chief support, Dan Ige came in on four hours notice to fight Diego Lopes in a catchweight contest after Brian Ortega pulled out with a temperature of over 100 Fahrenheit, losing to the Brazilian on points.
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'This is my dream' - Ige on inspired victory over Lopes as late replacement
Lopes was the busier fighter in the first round, and he maintained a body triangle for most of the second round.
Ige came on strong in the third round and with another minute may have forced a stoppage as his striking caught up with Lopes.
Earlier, Ian Machado Garry beat Michael 'Viper' Page in a unanimous points decision.
Garry's superior grappling won him the first and third rounds, with Page's slick stand-up game winning him the second, as all three judges scored the fight 29-28.
Complimentary about his defeated rival, Garry said: “He did a great, great game plan today. Tonight was an awesome fight."
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'I'm going to be world champion' - Garry on victory over Page
The Dubliner insisted that patience was the decisive factor.
He explained: "Nothing surprised me. I knew how good he was, how talented he was. For me, it was patience. Patience was the key today. Today was patience."
Continuing, Garry set his sights on higher ambitions: "The future is inevitable and I'm coming for this belt. I’m coming for that world title. I don’t care who’s next. I’m going to be a world champion."
The women's bantamweight contest resulted in a second-round TKO victory for Macy Claisson over Mayra Bueno Silva after the latter suffered a gruesome cut above her eye.
The other main card bout saw Roman Dolidze win a lacklustre encounter against former training partner Anthony Smith.
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