Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker believes Marc Goddard made the right call by stopping Alex Pereira vs. Jiri Prochazka when he did.
In the second round, Pereira had Prochazka hurt and then was landing some heavy elbows alongside the Octagon. After Prochazka fell to the ground, Pereira landed some more strikes and Goddard stopped it.
However, Prochazka did get up right away so some thought it was stopped too soon. But, according to Robert Whittaker, he believes the stoppage was justified and the right call.
“I think it was fine, I think the call was the right one to make because the way he fell backward after taking those elbows was kind of (telling). Just before Goddard jumps in and breaks them up, Jiri isn’t even defending, his arms are above his head. Jiri is one of those characters,” Whittaker said on his MMArcade Podcast.
“I think it was the right call for the safety of the fighter because that is what the ref is supposed to do. I think it is the right call because Jiri is one of those guys who will go out and come back, and go out and come back and go out and come back, and I swear I saw that with the Glover fight. He’s said it before in other fights, I think it was Reyes, he said he was out and got knocked out and came back,” Whittaker continued.
Jiri Prochazka confirmed he was out
Not only did Robert Whittaker think the stoppage was the right call, but so too did Jiri Prochazka. In the Octagon he said he went out and then a day later, speaking on his Instagram, he said Goddard made the right call.
“Hello everyone, I just want to say to all of you thank you for your support,” Prochazka said. “This is for me just motivation. Nothing else. Marc Goddard was right. Maybe two or three more seconds and it would be a different way, but what happened, happened. I accept that. Watch me now. I’ll be back stronger than ever. Thank you for the support.”
Ultimately, Robert Whittaker was impressed with Alex Pereira’s performance and said he deserved to stop Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295.
