December 5 was a busy day for the UFC’s light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira in the fight capital of the world. “Poatan” was in attendance for the 16th annual World MMA Awards where he picked up the Fighter of the Year Award for the four wins that he achieved in the space of one calendar year.
Before the ceremony got underway, a training session of his at the UFC Performance Institute nearly ended in him and his former opponent, Jamahal Hill, coming to blows. A video of the interaction was posted by Full Send MMA, showing Hill walking over to Pereira and his coach, Plinio Cruz.
After the two men start talking, the Brazilian throws a pair of gloves towards Hill, seemingly beckoning him to engage in a rematch of their meeting at UFC 300 in April which Pereira won via a knockout in the first round. With Cruz doing his best to diffuse the situation, the two men never actually touch each other but it was clear from the video that the 205-pound champion wasn’t going to back down.
“Poatan” and “Sweet Dreams” have had a rocky relationship both before and after their main event clash in Las Vegas. The way that Hill acted on fight week clearly bothered the current titleholder as after stopping the former champion, he taunted him with an instantly iconic post-fight celebration.
Pereira himself posted the video of their exchange on X, adding a four-word caption which when translated from Portuguese to English, comes out as “the atmosphere became tense”.
The animosity between former UFC opponents Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill threatened to boil over this week.
Pereira, the reigning light heavyweight champion, and former titleholder Hill met inside the cage at UFC 300 this past April, headlining the pay-per-view with “Poatan’s” gold on the line. The American’s plan to regain the belt was quickly foiled when he fell victim to the Brazilian’s renowned left hook inside the very first round.
Those remarks have been joined by claims that Pereira ‘fears’ running it back with the #3-ranked contender. Unsurprisingly, “Poatan” didn’t look scared when Hill confronted him at the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas on Thursday.
A video released by Full Send MMA shows Hill approaching his ex-opponent before stating, “Not on Twitter now,” as Pereira went for a respectful fist bump.
At that point, “Poatan” switched his attitude toward “Sweet Dreams,” throwing a pair of gloves and inviting him to spar. Hill did not take up the offer.
😳 Alex Pereira and Jamahal Hill ran into each other and were ready to throw down pic.twitter.com/tkMgzRO1m9
The hype for one of UFC 311’s most anticipated bouts is underway, as former light heavyweight champions Jamahal Hill and Jiří Procházka traded barbs over who had it worse in their unsuccessful attempts to reclaim the gold earlier this year.
Both Hill and Procházka never lost the championship inside the Octagon. They also challenged Alex Pereira earlier this year in attempts to claim the gold but were easily disposed of.
“Sweet Dreams” challenged Pereira at UFC 300, getting dropped and finished in the very first round. “BJP,” meanwhile, was rocked and dropped at the end of the first round in his UFC 303 rematch with “Poatan” before being finished seconds into the second frame.
Procházka recently brought about his criticism of Hill’s fighting style, putting his fighting IQ into question. Hill responded through a YouTube video, taking shots at several of his light heavyweight counterparts, including a response to his upcoming Czech opponent.
Jamahal Hill vs. Jiří Procházka: Who Got KO’d Worse By Alex Pereira?
“We had the same opponent in our last fight, right? In your last performance, you got dominated and knocked out,” Hill said. “You got dominated, and I got caught. There’s a huge difference. You’ve even got your ponytail leaning to the left. I hope you wear that ponytail in our fight so I can lean it back to the right for you.
“We can compare every performance — while I put on dominant performances, you just survive and scrape by with a win. We’re not the same.”
Procházka won the light heavyweight championship with a submission of Glover Teixeira at UFC 275. However, he vacated the title by the end of 2022 without making a defense due to an injury.
Hill went on to capture the belt with his own victory over Teixeira at UFC 283. Hill, however, was forced to vacate the title, too, after his own injury. That allowed for the initial fight between Pereira and Procházka that headlined UFC 295, with the Brazilian finishing “BJP” there as well.
The former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill had his name brought up in an unexpected conversation during UFC 309 fight week. A huge talking point surrounding the event was Jon Jones’ future after many expected that the consensus greatest of all time would retire after headlining Madison Square Garden.
Amongst the debate of him fighting Tom Aspinall or Alex Pereira next, Jones suggested a few other options that caught a lot of fight fans by surprise. “Bones” claimed that he only wanted to compete in fights against guy that are similar to him and in fights that the fans wanted to see.
He proceeded to name Derrick Lewis and Hill as two of those match-ups, much to the surprise of everyone else. “Sweet Dreams” hasn’t been a name that has been heavily linked to Jones, especially after he lost the 205-pound title at UFC 300 earlier this year.
In a recent interview with Inside Fighting, he gave his reaction to hearing Jones mention his name and the reaction that it brought from the fans.
“Yeah 100% it did. However, people getting weird about it, it’s like, he called me out?! You know what I mean. Which, that’s a fight that I’ve wanted since I got here. That was the first name that came out of my mouth whenever they put a UFC camera in front of me so for him to say that now to me, lets me know that I’ve been doing the right things.”
Hil’s attention is currently focused on Jiří Procházka who he will face at UFC 311 in January though he did say that with a potential fight against Jones likely taking place at heavyweight, moving up a weight class is something that is in his future.
“Yeah, that’s my plan eventually. I got a couple challenges here that I want to have, questions that I want to answer at this weight but then yeah, eventually I do want to move up.”
The bout will mark both men’s first appearances since respective knockout losses to reigning 205-pound kingpin Alex Pereira. While “Sweet Dreams” was stopped in one round at UFC 300, “BJP” narrowly made it to a second frame at UFC 303 before being violently stopped by “Poatan” for a second time.
Despite his own setback to the Brazilian, Hill had plenty to say about Procházka’s loss during International Fight Week. And the Czech star evidently still has that on his mind…
“I’m really looking forward for my next fight,” Procházka said in a recent video posted on X. “Jamahal, don’t speak about my performances, fight IQ, and all these things, because in your last fight, you didn’t show (anything), really.”
“This same guy, Ankalaev, in your last three fights, you showed totally nothing, so stay on the ground,” Procházka said.
Ankalaev is yet to face either Procházka or Hill. Regardless of the result of his expected challenge against Pereira, a showdown with one of the two could await him soon after, whether as defending champion or contender working his way back to the gold.
A clash between two former UFC light heavyweight champions was recently announced during the post-fight show following the Fight Night event in Macau. After the fact that Jamahal Hill will be facing Jiří Procházka at UFC 311 was seemingly accidently said on the broadcast, it was later reported all over social media.
With Magomed Ankalaev finally being in position to face Alex Pereira for the title, that leaves the #2 and #3-ranked contenders in the division free to settle a score that has existed for a long time. On January 18 in California, Hill and Procházka will finally put this chapter of their careers behind them.
When Hill defeated Glover Teixeira to become champion, it was because Procházka had vacated the title due to a significant injury. With Hill defending his title against the returning champion set to be the next fight, the same pattern repeated itself with “Sweet Dreams” giving the title up which was then won by Alex Pereira at UFC 295 last November.
Since then, “Poatan” has finished both men in consecutive fights meaning that a long-awaited match-up between them makes total sense for the division right now. With the news coming out sooner that expected, Hill did not confirm in his recent interview with Inside Fighting that this would be his next fight though he has teased it multiple times.
“Yeah we should, there’s gonna be an announcement soon. It’s gonna be announced soon, it’s a good one, it’s a good one.”
When Hill was asked whether he could provide any hints as to which fight it might be, he said that this contest is long overdue which essentially gives the game away without saying the name of his next opponent.
“It’s been a long time, it’s been a long time coming.”
Hill was then asked whether the fight he’s signed for is the one that all the fans expect it to be and though the former champion didn’t want to sign off on this, he made it pretty clear that it’s a big, highly anticipated bout.
“I don’t know which fight y’all think it’s going to be but I know y’all won’t be disappointed by it.”
After both unsuccessfully attempted to regain the gold they never lost in the Octagon earlier this year, two former UFC light heavyweight champions will do battle at the promotion’s first pay-per-view of 2025.
Jiří Procházka and Jamahal Hill are set to do battle at UFC 311, which takes place on Jan. 18 at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, CA.
Procházka confirmed the news in an Instagram post on Nov. 23.
Jiří Procházka vs. Jamahal Hill To Take Place At UFC 311
This will be both men’s first fight since unsuccessful challenges of current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira.
The Czech star originally won the championship with a submission of Glover Teixeira at UFC 275 in June 2022. Before the end of the year, however, he vacated the belt after suffering a shoulder injury without ever making a title defense.
Hill would then go on to claim the title with his own victory over Teixeira at UFC 283 the following January. Hill, however, also surrendered the gold after zero title defenses due to his own injury.
Pereira then went on to defeat Procházka at UFC 295 for the vacant championship and later defend the title against Hill at UFC 300. That same night this past April, Procházka finished Aleksandar Rakić.
Pereira and Procházka rematched on short notice at UFC 303, with Pereira scoring an early second-round KO.
UFC 311 is yet to have a confirmed main event, but the rematch between lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev and top contender Arman Tsarukyan is expected to headline.
Jon Jones won’t extend his fighting career beyond UFC 309 to unify the heavyweight title, but he will if it means fighting the likes of Derrick Lewis and Jamahal Hill.
Rather than the matchup itself, the main talking point in recent months and days has been the former light heavyweight kingpin’s decision to avoid facing interim titleholder Tom Aspinall, who earned his belt last November as a result of an injury to “Bones.”
In a media scrum during UFC 309 fight week, Jones continued to dismiss fighting his interim counterpart. This time, though, he added more names to the list of potential opponents he’d favor over the Brit.
But it perhaps came as a surprise when the names Lewis and Hill followed the term “super fights.”
“I could see myself after this entertaining super fights only,” Jones said. “If we get a dominant performance, I’m prepared to vacate the heavyweight championship and fight for fun. I want to fight for fun. … I don’t necessarily want it to be over, but I just want to fight for fun.
“I think about one of my teammates, Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone, he just fights. Win, lose, or draw, he just fights. I would love to kind of experience that for the first time in my career, just not having this belt to protect. Just fighting guys that I’d stylistically want to fight against,” Jones continued. “Random fights like Jamahal Hill. … I’m at an interesting weight where I can fight light heavyweights or heavyweights. Derrick Lewis, Biggest knockout puncher in history.”
Jones: "I could see myself, after this, entertaining super fights only"
Jones goes on to mention fighters like Jamahal Hill and Derrick Lewis as possibilities. pic.twitter.com/FNXE6LVKlv
Aspinall’s stoppage wins against Alexander Volkov, Sergei Pavlovich, and Curtis Blaydes haven’t stopped Jones branding the Brit’s résumé unworthy of his time, but “Bones” clearly holds Hill’s victories over Jimmy Crute, Johnny Walker, Thiago Santos, and a retiring Glover Teixeira en route to the then-vacant title in high regard.
Lewis, meanwhile, is without a win streak since 2021 and has lost five of his last eight fights.
Suffice to say, it would appear unlikely that the ‘ducking’ accusations being leveled against Jones would dissipate should he vacate the heavyweight title in order to fight the likes of “Sweet Dreams” and “The Black Beast.”
Consider former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill among those unimpressed by Magomed Ankalaev’s latest victory.
After controversially being snubbed of the chance to challenge reigning champion Alex Pereira in Utah earlier this month, Ankalaev returned nine months on from his main event win over Johnny Walker to meet the highly regarded Aleksandar Rakić.
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Hill reacted to the events that unfolded inside the Etihad Arena on Saturday night, unsurprisingly paying close attention to the crucial contest that played out in his division.
“Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakić, holy sh*t, what a pretty boring fight,” Hill said. “Pretty boring, fellas. I’m going to be real. I’m always going to be real whenever it comes to talking about fights, and this fight was boring. It showed a lack of weapons — I’m not going to say on Rakić’s side, because Rakić kind of got into his bag a little bit and showed some of the weapons he has. It showed a lack of weapons on Magomed’s end.
“I’ll get into that. it seems like we’re probably going to be on a collision course,” Hill continued. “Rakić showed a lack of fight IQ. Magomed is wholeheartedly a counter fighter. That’s what I mean by lack of tools. Lack of tools is being able to come forward and enter, things that actually get you forward. That’s not something that he’s good at doing, which, against Alex (Pereira) and I, is going to be a problem.”
But despite his less than positive assessment of the latest win on Ankalaev’s unbeaten run, Hill did admit that the Dagestani is deserving of a long-awaited second title shot in the UFC. And Dana White appeared to reluctantly share the same sentiment during his post-fight press conference.
“Sweet Dreams,” meanwhile, will be looking ahead to his chance to return to winning ways in pursuit of a shot against the Pereira vs. Ankalaev victor.
When Khalil Rountree stepped into the main event slot at UFC 307 to face Alex Pereira for the light heavyweight title, he wanted to put on a show. Of course, leaving Salt Lake City with the belt was always the number one priority but Rountree always aims to entertain.
He was unsuccessful in dethroning “Poatan” but that didn’t stop the fight from being an entertaining watch after the challenger was able to make it competitive in the opening rounds.
Hill stated on his YouTube channel that him yawning after the UFC 307 headliner wasn’t due to the fight not being an engaging watch for the four rounds that it lasted. “Sweet Dreams” claims that his reaction was more based on him not seeing anything surprising or impressive from either competitor, hence why he was bored.
He said that after seeing the video of Hill on social media after the fight, he was slightly puzzled by his reaction but isn’t too concerned by his explanation either.
“It’s nice to hear the clarification because based off the crowd response and everything that I’ve seen, other articles and posts that I’ve seen, majority of people seemed to think it was an entertaining fight. So I was a bit confused to see why maybe he thought it was boring or worth a yawn but like I said, the clarification definitely helps and yeah, not everyone’s going to think the same. Not everyone’s going to be entertained. It’s good, if there’s nothing to be scared of, like cool.”
UFC 307 was yet another card saved by Alex Pereira as he put on a memorable performance against Khalil Rountree, an opponent who unexpectedly gave him a tough fight.
The challenger landed several clean shots in the first two rounds, keeping fans worldwide at the edge of their seats. However, Pereira eventually altered his game plan and unleashed his gas tank in the third to sway the momentum and win via TKO in the fourth.
The UFC 307 main event was anything but boring, which explains why fans weren’t happy with Jamahal Hill yawning in the audience. The former UFC light heavyweight champion has finally opened up on his true intentions behind the reaction…
Jamahal Hill Calls Out ‘Disrespectful’ MMA Fans For Misunderstanding His Reaction To Alex Pereira Knocking Out Khalil Rountree At UFC 307
Hill recently broke down all UFC 307 fights on his YouTube channel. Before diving deep into the main event, he claimed his yawning reaction was misunderstood by the media.
“Sweet Dreams” gave Rountree his props for giving the UFC light heavyweight kingpin a run for his money in the first two rounds. The challenger performed much better than his expectations in every way. In contrast to what Hill had predicted, Rountree landed efficiently, had decent cardio, and showed exceptional durability.
“It’s crazy how y’all see a clip with no context, no nothing and y’all just be ready to talk s**t and just attack and come disrespectful as ever. And it’s like hilarious, all right. So, now, I wasn’t miked up, or anything like that, so I couldn’t explain the context of the yawn and things like that after the fight. I think I did hear a reporter told Alex, “Oh, Jamahal said the fight was boring.” I never said the fight was boring.”
Hill also clarified that he never claimed Pereira vs. Rountree to be a boring fight. Him yawning after the main event was a way to tell that he wasn’t surprised or impressed. To prove this, he even reflected on his UFC 307 predictions.
“Now, to the yawn, the yawn at the end was. Was it entertaining? Yes. Was I impressed? No. I was not impressed. You know, I’m ready to go. Did I see anything in the cage that scares me or that I didn’t expect to see? No. So, as far as reacting and everything, I don’t think I really need to do much of a reaction to this fight because, before, if you watch, or you watch my breakdowns, you can see I told you exactly how the fight was going to go.”
To be fair to Hill, he did mention Rountree’s inability to land counters against properly set-up shots, especially jabs. He also mentioned that the challenger would gas early as the height disadvantage would compel him to explode to hit “Poatan”. Both these predictions were indeed on point.
Alex Pereira will defend his UFC light heavyweight champion against Khalil Rountree at UFC 307 this weekend. Winning would help him break Ronda Rousey’s record and make him the UFC champion to defend their belt three times in the shortest duration.
Pereira’s rise to the top of the sport is unprecedented. He got a title shot at Israel Adesanya after just three fights in the UFC and bagged the middleweight championship by knocking out the long-time champ in the fifth.
After his only UFC loss to “The Last Stylebender”, “Poatan” has continued his impressive run in the light heavyweight division. According to Daniel Cormier, fighting the Brazilian is a huge mental challenge as well, and Rountree might be already doing better than the likes of Jamahal Hill and Jiří Procházka…
Daniel Cormier Gives Khalil Rountree The Edge Over Jamahal Hill And Jiří Procházka Ahead Of UFC 307 Title Fight Against Alex Pereira
Cormier interviewed Rountree on his YouTube channel recently. When asked about the odds heavily favoring the champion, Rountree stated that people underestimate him because he doesn’t talk trash and is usually respectful during interviews.
To this, Cormier couldn’t help but bring up how fighters act unusual before taking on Pereira. Hill used several antics to try and get into the UFC light heavyweight kingpin’s head, with DC recalling him trying to break the arrow during Pereira’s walkout at UFC 300. Following the KO loss, Hill has been called out by fans for making excuses as well.
Prochazka, who’s lost twice to Pereira, recently claimed that the Brazilian uses black magic and spirits to beat his opponents. For someone as stoic as the Czech fighter, these claims were called strange by many.
Rountree, according to Cormier, doesn’t seem to be acting unusual leading up to his UFC 307 title fight. He’s still the nice guy in interviews and isn’t feeling the pressure of facing an intimidating opponent like Pereira.
“That’s you, right? That’s you! But, the weirdest thing about Pereira and dealing with Pereira, people start to act like not themselves. So, when he was walking to the Octagon, Jamahal Hill was like reaching over the cage like come on! He’s like very animated. Jiří Procházka is just doing all kind of weird s**t. Jiri doing all kind of crazy s**t up in there. He’s doing this, he’s doing.. Jiri’s just not acting like himself, right?”
Despite Rountree having an impressive run of finishes with back-to-back wins last year, many expected to see Magomed Ankalaev get the next shot at “Poatan”.
He was unsurprisingly critical of the UFC’s decision to book Pereira against Rountree Jr. but some of his comments struck a nerve with another one of the light heavyweight division’s big names.
Why is Jamahal Hill crying? Pereira just made you sleep, get back in the like and work your way up or be ready for Abu Dhabi because Rakic may pull out
Jamahal Hill Says He’d Be Willing To Fight Magomed Ankalaev At UFC 308
During a recent YouTube video on his channel, Jamahal Hill gave his reaction to Ankalaev’s comments after the announcement.
Hill believes that Ankalaev has looked to gain popularity from the fans by coming at him to try and win some of them over.
The former champion also referenced how the Dagestani fighter hasn’t always been in the UFC’s good books, believing that he has bitten his tongue this time around rather than publicly slamming the promotion for not booking him as the next title challenger.
“I made a reaction video about the Khalil Rountree and Alex Pereira fight announcement and there was one guy in particular who yeah, I will agree he’s been given the run-around by the business right and I’m assuming now, he’s learned his lesson now to watch his mouth ‘cuz as you know, we talking about Mrs, I ain’t even going to, little ‘Frudamed Gankalaev’, ankle grabber, whatever you want to call him. This dude just can’t stop trying to like clout chase in whatever way he can. bro like, you fought to a draw, you had your chance, you had your chance of winning the title.
“Now, I am one of the people that agree that he should have been next in the title shot above Khalil Rountree, and I spoke on this. But, for you to say like, say I’m crying because I spoke on an obvious fact of the game that affects everybody in our weight class and things like that, I see what you tried to do bro. You see that the whole fan base, they’re kinda against me, they kind of want to throw s*** on me and s*** like that. You think that you can get some cool points by jumping on that bandwagon and trying to call me out. Stop it bro, stop it bro. I would expect a low IQ move like that from you, you know what I mean. You don’t want to say anything about the fight being announced because you’ve now learned your lesson from the time whenever you lost, talking about you don’t want to fight for the UFC…and now they have now smacked your hand and now you know to watch your mouth and stay in check.
Hill ended the video by saying that he would be open to stepping in to face Ankalaev if, for whatever reason, Rakić is unable to compete on October 26 in Abu Dhabi.
“Sweet Dreams” was originally scheduled to make a quick turnaround after losing the title but withdrew from UFC 303 in June due to an injury.
“They don’t even like you enough to let you fight [for the title] over the #8 dude! So chill out bro, chill out tryna get cool points bro, focus on other s***. You got a fight coming up against Rakić, shout out to Rakić cuz’ he’s very well capable of putting your a** out. But, best believe if my phone ring and they need somebody to come step in and handle you, bro you’re light work for me. You’re light work for me and I can’t wait to show that.”
Hill broke the fight down in a video on his YouTube channel where despite his hunger to avenge his loss and take back the title, he gave lots of credit to his former opponent.
Jamahal Hill Says Alex Pereira Looked Better Than Ever At UFC 303
In his breakdown of the fight, Hill spoke about a few things that he noticed from Pereira that were different to his previous fights inside the UFC.
Heading into this highly anticipated rematch, a lot was said about how Procházka was winning the first fight against “Poatan” until he was caught by his opponent’s lethal left hook.
Hill pointed out how Pereira was able to take control of the fight much earlier on this occasion and dominate the contest until it was over, unlike many of his other fights.
“Great main event, absolutely dominant performance by Alex from start to finish. I believe this is honestly probably the first that I’ve seen where Alex came out and won the fight from start until he got the finish. He didn’t have to come back and, it was still some adversity, Jiří still presented his challenges in it but he adapted and he made good adjustments.”
Having been on the end of an advancing, lunging left hook from the champion in April, Hill analyzed how his former foe made the adjustment in order to land the strike as a counter whilst moving away from his opponent, different to what he did back at UFC 295.
“The adjustment that I seen that Alex made from that was the check hook. More so before, you see him in come like he steps in with that hook and he tries to land it leaning in and throwing his power forward. This time we seen him implement it from more of a defensive and a counteractive manner in this particular fighting sequence.
“The first hook that he landed on Jiří, he hit him and you could see the eyes roll, you could see him get dazed a little bit. From there, he landed another one that kind of wobbled him, that kind of shook the legs a little bit and then he landed the one at the end of the round that put him out, that put him on his back. It’s beautiful adjustments bro, beautiful adjustments. He looked evolved, he looked like he’s taking more steps and getting better as a fighter.”
UFC 302 is in the books, meaning attention will soon turn to the mixed martial arts leader’s next pay-per-view offering.
The promotion was in Newark, New Jersey, last week, where the Prudential Center played host to a number of intriguing matchups. Of note were victories for UFC Lightweight Champion Islam Makhachev, former middleweight kingpin Sean Strickland, the always entertaining Kevin Holland, and heavyweight contender Jailton Almeida.
While the aftermath of the June 1 card is currently the talk of the town, it won’t be long until focus sways to the next PPV, and from the current crop of elite lightweights to one of the division’s former champs.
At UFC 303, set for Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena on June 29, former two-division UFC titleholder Conor McGregor will make the walk for the first time since suffering a gruesome leg break against Dustin Poirier in July 2021.
Hill, Ulberg, Garry, Page Set The Stage For McGregor Headliner At UFC 303
Before “The Notorious” Irishman makes his long-awaited comeback in the main event, a number of high-profile names will take to the Octagon looking to make the post of their position on the major card.
After the two elite strikers open the main card, Joe Pyfer and Mayra Bueno Silva will look to bounce back from their defeats earlier this year. After a main event loss to Jack Hermansson, “Bodybagz” is tasked with getting the better of veteran Canadian Marc-André Barriault. “Sheetara,” meanwhile, must rebound at the expense of Macy Chiasson months on from an unsuccessful challenge for the vacant bantamweight gold against Raquel Pennington.
Then, setting the stage for McGregor vs. Chandler in the co-main event will be former light heavyweight champ Jamahal Hill. “Sweet Dreams” is making a quick turnaround following his knockout loss to Alex Pereira at UFC 300. He’ll share the cage with the charging Carlos Ulberg, who is stepping in as a short-notice replacement for Khalil Rountree.
See below for the full UFC 303 card, as it stands.
Main Card:
Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler (welterweight main event)
Jamahal Hill vs. Carlos Ulberg (light heavyweight co-main event)
Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Macy Chiasson (women’s bantamweight)
Welcome to MMA News Today, a daily feature running down the most interesting stories in the world of mixed martial arts. For May 28, 2024, we’re taking a look at:
White praises McGregor’s business and fighting mind
Vera has suspicions of Brazilian drug testing protocol
Ulberg talks ahead of huge opportunity on June 29
Dana White Talks About What Makes Conor McGregor Special That You Simply Can’t Teach
During a recent appearance on the In Search of Excellence Podcast, UFC President Dana White spoke about the emergence of Conor McGregor as a superstar.
White recalls his first encounter with “The Notorious” where they met in Las Vegas after he was signed to the promotion.
White also emphasised how despite coming from a working class background and cashing welfare cheques, McGregor is an excellent businessman with a great mind for the sport.
He credited the former UFC champ-champ with having the kind of instincts that you simply can’t teach, comparing him to one of the biggest combat sports stars that came before him.
“If you look at all the brands that he has built off of his brand, very very sharp kid. When you hear some speak, he’s very articulate about fighting. Again when you talk about fighter IQ, like Tyson, Conor’s fight IQ is off the charts.”
Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera Says He Thinks But Can’t Prove That José Aldo Was Juicing For Return Fight At UFC 301
José Aldo is back in the mix at bantamweight following his triumphant return to the Octagon earlier this month.
Vera suffered a defeat to Aldo back in December of 2020 which he rebounded from with a great winning streak.
During a recent appearance on the Jaxxon Podcast, Vera suggested that he isn’t sure whether or not his former opponent was being tested for his return fight.
“Chito” didn’t say for certain but he does have his suspicions about what went down in Brazil.
“Check this out, fighting in Brazil, no USADA, those [Jose Aldo] traps were f****** thick so… José might go to those f****** farmers and [juice]. I mean they’re notorious for that, that’s normal in Brazil right? I don’t know, I cannot prove it but I mean you fight in Brazil, I don’t think they’re testing.”
Carlos Ulberg Speaks On Jamahal Hill Fight & Conor McGregor Inspiration
The opportunity to fight on June 29 at UFC 303 is going to be massive for all of the fighters on the undercard but especially Carlos Ulberg.
International Fight Week is set to be even bigger than usual thanks to the long-awaited return of Conor McGregor in the main event.
In a recent interview with Engage on YouTube, he spoke for the first time about this fight and where he stands on McGregor and fighting on the same card as his comeback.
“We’re going up against Hill, I think he’s number three at the moment so that’s some really good news that puts us in a really good spot and I’m not going to pass that opportunity.”
“He is definitely a big star and to fight under that undercard would be amazing and if we can get the co-main event, then that’d be even more spectacular so yeah man.
“He goes in with confidence and that’s something that I like to lead into my fights. When I jump in that cage, it’s just me, my opponent and the preparation that I’ve had prior.”
Beating Hill, who headlined UFC 300 in April against Alex Pereira, will see Ulberg extend his winning streak to seven and likely secure himself a position in the top five.
In his first interview since the fight was made official, he told Engage about what this fight and opponent means to him.
“We’re going up against Hill, I think he’s number three at the moment so that’s some really good news that puts us in a really good spot and I’m not going to pass that opportunity.”
Carlos Ulberg Talks Fighting On The Same Card As Conor McGregor On June 29
Competing on International Fight Week is already a big deal but this year’s instalment is something entirely different.
Ulberg vs Hill will take place in a prominent spot on the PPV main card of UFC 303 which will be headlined by the returning Conor McGregor.
This fight was already the biggest of his career but now the 33-year old has the opportunity to secure a massive win on one of the biggest platforms possible.
In the interview with Engage, Ulberg spoke about McGregor and how he is able to draw inspiration from “The Notorious”.
“Yeah McGregor is obviously the biggest star to rise out of the UFC and even sporting alone. So everybody that you talk to, they all know McGregor even if they’re not MMA fans. I spoke to someone today and they didn’t know about MMA but they knew who McGregor was which was amazing so he is definitely a big star and to fight under that undercard would be amazing and if we can get the co-main event, then that’d be even more spectacular so yeah man.
“He goes in with confidence and that’s something that I like to lead into my fights. When I jump in that cage, it’s just me, my opponent and the preparation that I’ve had prior.”
Dressed to the nines in a white tux, red tie, and shades, Jamahal Hill rocked up to the UFC Vegas 48 post-fight press conference in style to deliver a message. Having just achieved the biggest win of his career over Johnny Walker, Hill, with his similarly attired son sitting next to him, wanted the assembled press to know one thing—that they should start believing, because he’s the real deal.
“It’s time to start having a different kind of conversation, because you all are asking the wrong questions about me,” Hill told press. “‘Where’s he going next? How good am I for real?’ Stop doubting. Start believing, ‘cause it’s for real.”
Despite knocking out almost every opponent placed before him in his young career, Hill feels that he’s underappreciated—by the UFC and the press. The 30-year-old believes he’s been denied the fanfare lavished upon the UFC’s other top prospects.
Jamahal Hill, and his son, at the the UFC Vegas 48 post-fight press conference. PHOTO: MMA JUNKIE
“The spotlight isn’t shining on me like it is on other people,” Hill said in 2021. “Which is cool. You know what I mean? ‘Cause at the end of the day, what I can do, my abilities, you can’t ignore it.”
And ignore them you can’t. By knocking Johnny Walker out on his feet with an early frontrunner for KO of the year, Jamahal showed why he should be touted as a future title contender. Now in the light heavyweight top ten, he plans on doing the same to the division’s best.
“I feel like the division is a little tired,” Hill told the press after his victory over Walker. “Some guys need some naps.”
A Future champion or Another ‘Johnny Walker?’
Hill, the self-proclaimed “best boxer in the UFC”, isn’t short on confidence. But the Michigan native, who only made his professional MMA debut just over four years ago, has so far backed it up.Entering the UFC via the Contender Series in early 2020, Hill has earned five KOs in six fights (one, however, was later ruled a no-contest after he tested positive for marijuana).
Hill’s only loss, and perhaps the biggest asterisk against his future potential, was that to jiu-jitsu specialist Paul Craig, who submitted him within two minutes, dislocating his arm in the process. Humbled, Hill admitted to learning a powerful lesson, attributing the loss to his “flat-out arrogance” heading into the fight.
Jamahal Hill Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Clearly, much like Johnny Walker early in his UFC career, Hill has relied on his spectacular KO power to end fights early. But will ‘Sweet Dreams’ similarly stumble against the division’s best? Or can he become champ?
According to former UFC lightweight Kenny Florian, it all depends on whether Hill can shore up his ground game.
“I absolutely believe he can be champion,” said Florian on a recent episode of the Anik & Florian Podcast (h/t Sporskeeda). “You know with that Paul Craig loss, I think that’s the kind of loss that’s going to drive someone like Jamahal Hill. That’s the kind of thing that’s going to motivate him and get him to shore up those weaknesses that perhaps was exposed in that fight. So, does he need to improve his grappling based on what we saw? Yes. But I do think he has absolutely all the makings of the champion based on what I have seen, based on how he handles himself, based on how he has climbed back in that division with the adversity that he has experienced… I would not be surprised in the least to see him as a 205-pound champion at some point.”
“I’ve already said it, bro, as long as I got the say-so, he’s next,” Hill told TMZ. “Just for the simple fact that what I’m here to do, I can’t have people speaking out. If you gonna speak my name, you better be sure. You better be sure. And he spoke it, and I’m going to go out and make an example of him.”
Even without the beef between the duo, a matchup between newly-ranked #10 Hill and #8 Oezdemir makes a lot of sense. Oezdemir has lost five of his last seven fights, including his most recent to Procházka and Magomed Ankalaev. Derailing a surging prospect like Hill could give his UFC career the life-saving defibrillation it needs.
For Hill, facing a fellow knockout artist with little ground game like Oezdemir—and a seemingly faded one at that—will likely be easy work and propel him further up the top ten, where a true test of his skills may await.
However, many may no doubt be wondering: Would Hill’s one-punch knockout power, like Walker and Oezdemir before him, only carry him so far? Possibly. But if there’s one thing that drives ‘Sweet Dreams,’ it’s proving his doubters wrong.
What do you think? Does Jamahal Hill have the potential to be light heavyweight champ?
Jamahal Hill has come to Johnny Walker’s defense against Ben Askren.
Following his win at UFC Vegas 48, Jamahal Hill has been riding high. His opponent, Johnny Walker, however, has not been. Walker has been taking many shots from internet trolls regarding his loss and memes of his knockout have been circulating. Walker and his fiancée both issued statements asking fans to leave them alone and to address the hardships that come after a public loss like Walker experienced.
Fighters being trolled is not new, unfortunately. Many times when a fighter loses via knockout, the image of them on the Octagon floor becomes viral. One man who knows this feeling well is Ben Askren. He became the subject of such ridicule when he lost to Jorge Masvidal. Now, he has taken to Twitter himself to mock Walker and his response to the situation.
We all know what we signed up for. Fighters need to quit being little babies about people making fun of them on twitter. https://t.co/enn2bpTWwj
“We all know what we signed up for. Fighters need to quit being little babies about people making fun of them on Twitter,” Askren wrote.
Jamahal Hill Claps Back At Askren
This message by Askren was following Hill coming to the defense of Walker. He put out his own message to fans warning them about the effects of their words and asking people to be kind. Askren did not embrace this message, instead took to mocking it instead.
To this end, Hill did not back down. He shot back at Askren in a series of his own Tweets.
If you knew what u signed up for why did u retire after a year in the ufc? U couldn't handle the heat and ran!! I don't need fans to love me, I love me some me!! But your a bitch if your ok with ppl harassing your family.. I would expect u to understand a alphas mind!! https://t.co/RQ9nlVKhCf
“If you knew what u signed up for why did u retire after a year in the ufc? U couldn’t handle the heat and ran!!” Hill wrote. “I don’t need fans to love me, I love me some me!! But your a b–ch if your ok with ppl harassing your family. I would expect u to understand a alphas mind!!”
These two continue to go back and forth. Askren is no longer fighting, and it is unlikely that this feud will amount to anything, but Hill has been relentless in his attack on Askren.
And your a curly headed fuck ctfu 🤣 bro sit your 2k scanned face having, Will Ferrell lookin, sleepbag body built, 40 year old virgin joke having ass tf down somewhere!! I'll really roast your crimson chin having ass!!! 🤣🤣 https://t.co/M4G4g0vYHo
UFC light heavyweight contender Jamahal Hill knows he has at least one more doubter to silence as he continues to rise in the rankings.
Hill earned arguably the most gruesome knockout of his career against Johnny Walker at UFC Vegas 48. After taking his time to find his rhythm on the feet, he landed a big right hand that sent Walker collapsing to the mat halfway through the first round.
Hill has rebounded in a big way since his first UFC loss to Paul Craig at UFC 263. Before his knockout win over Walker, he finished Jimmy Crute in just 48 seconds last December.
Hill used his UFC Vegas 48 post-fight interview to address the doubters of his skillset. After getting word of Hill’s comments, Oezdemir pointed out that he remains a doubter following Hill’s main event win.
During a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Hill addressed Oezdemir’s tweet and whether or not he’ll be his next opponent in the cage.
“I’ve already said it, bro, as long as I got the say-so, he’s next,” Hill said. “Just for the simple fact that what I’m here to do, I can’t have people speaking out. If you gonna speak my name, you better be sure. You better be sure. And he spoke it, and I’m going to go out and make an example of him.”
Hill earned a spot amongst the top 10 UFC light heavyweights after his recent wins and could potentially face Oezdemir next. After back-to-back losses to Magomed Ankalaev and Jiří Procházka, Oezdemir has slipped to No. 8 in the latest light heavyweight rankings.
Hill has proven to not walk away from a challenge or a fight and seems intent on addressing Oezdemir’s questions. If a fight between them ends up happening next, fans can expect quite the hostility in the buildup.
Do you want to see Jamahal Hill vs. Volkan Oezdemir next?
Volkan Oezdemir wants Jamahal Hill to know that there is at least one person still doubting him.
Heading into and following UFC Vegas 48, Jamahal Hill addressed the doubters he has had along his rise up the light heavyweight ranks. The 30-year-old has gone 4-1 during his UFC run thus far, with three of those wins coming by way of knockout. Nevertheless, he believes that he has been met with more doubt than praise, and he has been sure to tell everyone so, including in his Octagon interview at UFC Vegas 48.
After knocking out Johnny Walker in the UFC Vegas 48 main event, Hill again got on the microphone to address these doubters.
Hill’s light heavyweight peer Volkano Oezdemir seems to be among those who witnessed Hill’s victory and Octagon interview on Saturday, and he decided to inform the night’s big winner that he still has one notable doubter.
“I’m still doubting,” Oezdemir said in response to a social media post quoting Hill as saying “Stop doubting.”
Jamahal Hill Responds To Oezdemir’s Doubts
Volkan Oezdemir’s message to Hill may very well be his way of letting the rising contender know that he’d be interested in a potential fight against one another. The fight does make sense for Hill rankings-wise since Oezdemir is ranked #8 while Hill is ranked at #12.
After Hill’s victory over Walker (#10), Hill is expected to crack the top 10 this week. Even still, he would need to make a big jump if he is to surpass Oezdemir’s position. And even if he does, the pair will likely be close to one another in the rankings.
Shortly after Oezdemir’s tweet, Hill issues the following response:
I mean that understandable with the brain damage you took in your last 2 fights!!! (1 against a guy making his debut) My hands will change your life think it's a game and fuck around and find out!!! https://t.co/XgoWIkdIFj
“I mean that understandable with the brain damage you took in your last 2 fights!!! (1 against a guy making his debut) My hands will change your life think it’s a game and fuck around and find out!!!”
As Hill alluded to in his response, one reason why he may not have an interest in this fight is because of the contrasting trajectories the fighters are on. Hill has won two straight fights by knockout and three wins out of his last four while Oezdemir has lost two straight fights.
In any event, Hill’s closing line of “fuck around and find out” could certainly be interpreted as “Sweet Dreams” being willing to make time to try putting Volkan Oezdemir to sleep.
Would you be interested in seeing a fight between Volkan Oezdemir and Jamahal Hill next?
UFC light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker has spoken out for the first time since his knockout loss to Jamahal Hill at UFC Vegas 48.
Walker has now lost four of his last five fights after the brutal knockout to Hill in his second-straight UFC main event. He had lost to former title challenger Thiago Santos in his last outing via a unanimous decision.
Walker and Hill slugged it out in the opening minutes of the fight before Hill caught Walker with a massive right hand that sent Walker falling backward and onto the canvas below. Hill has rebounded with back-to-back wins since his first UFC loss to Paul Craig.
In a recent Instagram post, Walker updated his fans on his health following the loss and where he plans to go from here.
“I’m OK,” Walker said. “Just a little cut. I (go to) sleep in the fight, so something happened wrong.
“Let’s eat and be happy. And let’s go to the next one.”
Walker made his UFC debut against Khalil Rountree in 2018 following his appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series. He began his UFC career with three-straight wins over the likes of Rountree, Justin Ledet, and Misha Cirkunov.
But things have taken a different turn for Walker since his last winning streak. He has suffered lopsided defeats at the hands of Nikita Krylov and Corey Anderson before bouncing back with a win over Ryan Spann.
At 29 years old, Walker still has plenty of time to get back on track in his UFC tenure. However, it’ll take a lot for him to work out of his series of recent struggles inside the cage.
What do you think is next for Johnny Walker’s UFC career?
Immediately after sleeping Johnny Walker in the UFC Vegas 48 main event, Jamahal Hill is already laying out plans for what would be the biggest fight of his career.
Jamahal Hill once complained that the UFC was not promoting him as well as they are other fighters. With performances like what he turned in last night, he has done a fine job of promoting himself while making it harder for the UFC to not promote him to his liking as well.
Shortly after the halfway point of the first round, Hill showed why he entered the bout as the favorite while putting to sleep any doubters that may have lingered, right alongside Johnny Walker.
Now with back-to-back first-round KO wins and a top-10 ranking likely in his near future, Hill is already plotting his next move, not unlike other stars who masterminded their ascent into superstardom.
The next phase of Hill’s self-rocketing push is facing another flashy KO artist and one who has captured the imaginations of MMA fans worldwide: Jiří Procházka.
“Right now, like other than really the Jiří (Procházka) fight, not really,” Hill responded when asked of ideas for his next opponent during the UFC Vegas 48 post-fight press conference. “Nobody else is really, like, everybody else is tied up.
“The reason I want Jiří so bad is ’cause I feel like that’s a fight that, like, from both ends, it would be a banger. It would be a banger. I think it would be promoted well, and I think not that many other people have that star ability. Like, I feel like I talk well, I feel like I dress well, I feel like I fight well, you know what I mean? So I feel like I got that swag, and I feel like he’s one of those guys, so, yeah.”
It goes without saying that Hill’s wish is likely only plausible if Procházka were to lose his upcoming title fight against champion Glover Teixeira at UFC 274 in May. Should Procházka win, there would be quite a few potential opponents who are ranked higher than Hill that the promotion would probably select ahead of him.
Still, Hill is climbing the ranks after another big KO, so if he is willing to fight someone not named Jiří Procházka for his next fight and earn yet another KO, then who knows, maybe he will get that dream fight that he’s looking for, whether or not “Denisa” possesses the light heavyweight gold.
Johnny Walker vs. Jamahal Hill was a memorable main event fight.
The two fighters met in a bout on Saturday night (February 19, 2022) at the UFC Vegas 48 event from Las Vegas, Nevada at the UFC Apex facility. Just minutes into the first round, Hill landed a right hand on the temple and Walker was out on his feet. Hill with a big right hand on the ground for extra measure.
Peep the highlights of the fight courtesy of the UFC’s official Twitter account:
Walker had been undefeated during his time with the Las Vegas-based promotion, but that changed when he was finished by Corey Anderson at the UFC 244 pay-per-view event from Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. He previously picked up KO wins over the likes of Khalil Rountree Jr. and Justin Ledet, as well as Misha Cirkunov on March 2, 2019, at UFC 235 via TKO in the first round. He dropped a decision loss to Nikita Krylov in March 2020, but rebounded with a KO win over Ryan Spann in September 2020. In his previous fight, he lost to Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 38 by decision.
Hill entered this fight with a 9-1-1 record. He earned his way to the promotion through Dana White’s Contender’s Series. He went to a no contest with Klidson Abreu at UFC on ESPN 9 then beat Ovince Saint Preux by TKO in December 2020. He lost to Paul Craig by TKO at UFC 263 and then beat Jimmy Crute by KO in December 2021.
Last year, Jamahal Hill stated that he did not feel the UFC was promoting him properly. Tonight, he finds himself in his first main event with the opportunity to sell himself to the world.
The following article is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of The MMA News Archives.
[ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JANUARY 31, 2021, 9:34 PM]
Headline: Jamahal Hill: UFC Not Promoting Me Like They Have Others
UFC light heavyweight Jamahal Hill does not think the UFC is documenting his ascent the way they have done others before him.
Khamzat Chimaev. Sean O’Malley. Maycee Barber. Mike Perry. Johnny Walker. These are just a few names who were considered “hype trains” shortly after their arrival in the UFC. There have been many others who have been given the red-carpet rollout to announce their disruptive arrival, sometimes prematurely, other times right on schedule, but rising UFC lightweight Jamahal Hill is still awaiting the same premium treatment after the hot start to his UFC career.
The Contender Series graduate is 2-0 in the UFC (would be 3-0 if not for a marijuana-related no-contest), with one win being against contentious gatekeeper Ovince Saint Preux in December. Before and after being one of the select few to finish Saint Preux, Hill believes that the UFC has not given him the same love as some others who have shown high promise.
“Here’s how I look at it: I see how the attention of how they shine the spotlight on certain things fighters do,” Hill recently told MMA Junkie Radio. “Things like that and that turn people up and blow them up and get the attention of the whole MMA world, that hasn’t happened to me. Even with the win over ‘OSP,’ that didn’t happen for me.
Jamahal Hill lands a big left on Ovince Saint Preux. Image: Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
“And so the ‘OSP’ fight, I didn’t, I wasn’t promoted at all. I’ve seen this video, ‘prospects to watch,’ and I wasn’t even on that, co-main event and undefeated. You know what I mean? Little things like that. The spotlight isn’t shining on me like it is on other people. Which is cool. You know what I mean? ‘Cause at the end of the day, what I can do, my abilities, you can’t ignore it.”
Although Jamahal Hill feels he has been shorted on the hype, he has been given his respect by the UFC rankings committee, with the 29-year-old making the list at #15 following his win over Saint Preux. Hill is now set to face Paul Craig, who is placed one spot above him at #14. Perhaps Hill will be keeping tabs on how he is being promoted in the build-up to the fight, but he will surely look to build on the hype in his next performance with a skill set that makes the job of the UFC marketing team a lot easier.
Do you agree with Jamahal Hill? Has he been underhyped by the UFC?
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