[autotag]Jiri Prochazka[/autotag] made quite the splash in his UFC debut and the big Czech is keen to keep the momentum going.
Prochazka (27-3-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) scored a spectacular second-round knockout of Volkan Oezdemir at UFC 251 in Abu Dhabi as he extended his win streak to 11.
The former Rizin FF light heavyweight champion drew a stern test on his octagon debut, but he passed that test with flying colors and now finds himself in the UFC’s light heavyweight top 10. Now Prochazka wants to keep leveling up his opponents, and says he’ll upgrade his performances to match.
“I’m very glad for that,” Prochazka told MMA Junkie. “That was a nice step from the UFC because after Rizin, I had so many fights and they give me very good opponents, but I like it. I’m very glad for that, because I need to challenge myself. I need to have tough opponents in front of me because my opponent will make my performance.”
Prochazka came out relatively unscathed and said he wants to return before the end of the year. He has no specific opponent in mind, but doesn’t see himself being too far away from a title shot.
“I think October will be a very nice month for fighting, something like that,” he said. “October, November, I wanna fight.”
He continued, “I don’t care (who I face next). In the light heavyweight division, every guy has a good style and I like them. I don’t care, I just want to go for the title, so I don’t care who they give me. I just want to show my skills, my power and my technique.”
Nobody has been able to figure out the puzzle of UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Prochazka expects him to still be at the division’s summit when he eventually gets into title contention.
Jones’ decision wins against Thiago Santos and Dominick Reyes were much closer than his previous title defenses, with some observers scoring the fights to his opponents. But Prochazka says Jones’ less-dominant displays could be down to weariness, rather than the level of his opposition.
“I think he must be very tired,” Prochazka said. “Jon Jones must be very tired from defending the title. Still and still the champion, so I don’t know what’s his motivation to be the champion. Maybe I’m on the level to be on top, but I’m learning from fight to fight, and I need to fight one or two more fights and then I’ll feel more comfortable in the UFC. I need to feel at home in the fights, so I think one or two more fights and everything will be on the right way to the top.”
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