Exclusive: Jamahal Hill Thinks Jiří Procházka Made A Mistake Giving Up The Belt

Light heavyweight contender Jamahal Hill thinks it was a mistake for former champion Jiří Procházka to give up his title.

Hill Prochazka
Credit Jamahal Hill and Jiri Prochazka on Instagram

UFC light heavyweight Jamahal Hill thinks the former champ Jiří Procházka made a bad call giving up his title. 

The UFC light heavyweight title picture had a massive shakeup this past week. Originally there was to be a title fight between champion Jiří Procházka and Glover Teixeira for the light heavyweight belt at UFC 282. Just a few weeks before this bout was set to happen it was revealed that Procházka had suffered an injury and had to pull out of the fight. After some shuffling around, Procházka relinquished his title. 

In the wake of the injury and title resignation, the UFC made a switch to the main event of UFC 282 and offered a title fight to Jan Blachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev. With this Procházka will have to heal up and face the winner to become the champion again. 

Jamahal Hill would not have done the same if he were in Procházka’s position

With a personal interest in the light heavyweight division, rising star Jamahal Hill was asked his thoughts on the situation with Procházka. He did not think it was a good idea for Procházka to give up his title so easily. He feels an interim title could have made sense in this situation. He explained more in an exclusive interview with MiddleEasy.

“If it’s me, no, I’m not giving up the belt just for the simple fact of, money wise just what it does. Having the belt automatically you make a certain amount. I’m pretty sure as a challenger, you don’t get paid for pay per view, you only get paid for pay-per-view as a champion,” he said. “So even if it does come back, he’s fighting on pay-per-view they’re not gonna pay him any pay-per-view money. You gave that up when you gave up the belt. So certain things like definitely this aspect for a reason why I would not have done that.”

Hill is currently ranked sixth in the stacked 205-pound division. He is slated to take on Anthony Smith in the main event of the UFC on ESPN+ 80 taking place on March 11. Hill has won three in a row against top opponents and could find himself in the title picture with a win over Smith. The return date for Procházka is unclear but both he and Teixeira could be in the running for the next title shot following UFC 282. 

Published on November 30, 2022 at 10:10 am
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