Jamahal Hill can understand why fight fans were left disappointed by the announcement of the UFC 300 headliner.
Immediately following UFC 298 in Anaheim, Dana White revealed that Hill would be returning to the Octagon for the first time in nearly a year and a half to challenge reigning light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira on April 13.
Alex Pereira will defend his UFC Lhw belt against Jamahal Hill at UFC 300
— Bloody Elbow (@BloodyElbow) February 18, 2024
The announcement was met with a resounding “meh” from pundits who were expecting something far more extravagant given the significance of the event.
Speaking with Kevin Iole less than a week removed from the big reveal, Jamahal Hill believes it’s crazy how negative the reaction was, but cast much of the blame on Dana White, noting that the UFC CEO promised a mindblowing fight only to offer up something that everyone was already expecting.
“It’s a little crazy, but it’s understandable just because of what was promised and how it was hyped,” Hill said. “People were promised something that was going to blow their minds. Something that they didn’t see coming and a lot of people already knew that me and Alex were going to fight.
“[Dana] did very well hyping this card up and building it up. People were legitimately saying they were expecting Conor [McGregor] vs. Jesus. He did great. He did his job as a promoter.”
He added, “13 former gold holders on this card. I feel like Dana dreamed big for this card. Out of the ordinary unimaginable type things. He tried to get them out there and they just slowly fell apart on him which is kind of a sad thing because he did an amazing job putting his card together. They spent a lot of money putting this together.”
Asked about the opportunity to headline such a massive card, Hill was nothing short of gracious.
“It’s a monumental moment. I’ve never seen a card this stacked. With the names that are on this card and where those names stand now and in the history of this sport, I’ve never seen a card stacked like this. Hands down the biggest card that I’ve ever seen. The biggest card I’ve ever been a part of. It’s an honor and it’s an opportunity for me to go out and show the world who I am as one of the top fighters in this game.”
Jamahal Hill Says His History with Glover Teixeira Won’t Be a Factor at UFC 300
Standing in his way of leaving T-Mobile Arena with his hand raised at UFC 300 will be Alex Pereira — the fastest-rising star in promotional history. Just seven fights into his Octagon career, ‘Poatan’ has already claimed two world titles, winning the middleweight crown before moving up to light heavyweight and taking that title courtesy of a second-round KO against Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295 in November.
Standing by his side throughout the journey has been MMA legend Glover Teixeira, who just happens to be the man Jamahal Hill defeated to kickstart his first title reign at 205.
With Teixeira having spent 25 minutes inside the cage with Hill, many suggest that it will give Pereira a strategic advantage leading up to fight night. ‘Sweet Dreams’ disagrees.
“[Glover] doesn’t know me at all. What did he do that worked? In that fight against Glover, what did they do that worked? The version of Jamahal Hill that fought Glover is not the same version as the one that’s fighting Alex Pereira. That’s the thing about my game. I can change my game. It mods to what I need it to. So the fighter, the mindset, and everything that Glover faced is not the same for Alex. Glover was grappling. He wanted to get at my legs and take me down.”
Watch the full interview below:
