Going into Saturday’s UFC Combat Evening principal occasion, it is not unfair to say we do not actually know who Dominick Reyes or Jiri Prochazka are.
With regards to simply identify worth alone, we do. Reyes (12-2) fought Jon Jones for the UFC’s mild heavyweight championship 14 months in the past — and lots of observers thought he ought to have gained the judges’ determination in that battle. Prochazka (27-Three-1) has been a champion in one other promotion, and he made a splash in his UFC debut final yr.
As these two put together to satisfy on Saturday in Las Vegas, we actually know of them. However when it comes to who every of those males is inside this division, we nonetheless do not.
Is Reyes, 31, the person who practically toppled Jones again in February 2020? Or is he the man who seemed misplaced in a title battle towards Jan Blachowicz final September? Reyes misplaced that bout by way of TKO, and by no means actually seemed comfy in any respect. He has since mentioned he wasn’t himself that night time, that he misplaced a bit little bit of his identification after the Jones loss and due to well being points in his household.
And as for Prochazka, is he a respectable title challenger or merely a enjoyable wild card within the division? The 28-year-old is extraordinarily unorthodox, which makes him exceptionally harmful. He’s on a run that has seen him end 9 consecutive opponents — seven inside the primary spherical — and it hasn’t been simple for the UFC to seek out him an opponent. However when it comes to proving his combating fashion will persistently work towards the elite of the division, this battle ought to inform us quite a bit.
Look, though Blachowicz has clearly established himself because the king of the 205-pound division following Jones’ exit in 2020, this weight class remains to be broad open. If Reyes actually is the man who pushed Jones to the brink of defeat two fights in the past, he’s able to profitable a UFC title this yr. And if Prochazka’s fashion actually is backed by substance, the identical will be mentioned of him.
Proper now, we won’t say with certainty who these guys are inside this division. That ought to change come Saturday night time.
By the numbers
Zero: Losses by Reyes in nontitle fights. He’s coming off his solely two defeats, and each got here in bouts with the sunshine heavyweight belt on the road.
11: Consecutive victories for Prochazka, all however considered one of them coming by knockout.
1: Victories among the many 27 in Prochazka’s profession that didn’t come by way of stoppage.
Four.53: Strikes landed per minute by Reyes within the UFC, the fourth most amongst energetic mild heavyweights. Prochazka landed 5.7 per minute in his July debut towards Volkan Oezdemir, however doesn’t qualify among the many stats leaders as a result of he has solely that one UFC bout.
2: Male fighters who’ve gained their UFC debut towards an opponent ranked within the promotion’s high 10 (since UFC rankings started in 2013). Prochazka is one, knocking out Oezdemir in his Octagon debut in July. The opposite is Justin Gaethje, who debuted with a win over Michael Johnson in 2017.
Sources: ESPN Stats & Info and UFC Stats
5 vs. 5
Dominick Reyes’ most up-to-date outcomes
Loss: Jan Blachowicz (TKO2, Sept. 27, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Loss: Jon Jones (UD, Feb. eight, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Chris Weidman (KO1, Oct. 18, 2019; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Volkan Oezdemir (SD, March 16, 2019; watch on ESPN+)
Win: Ovince Saint Preux (UD, Oct. 6, 2018)
Jiri Prochazka’s most up-to-date outcomes
Win: Volkan Oezdemir (KO2, July 12, 2020; watch on ESPN+)
Win: CB Dollaway (KO1, Dec. 31, 2019)
Win: Fabio Maldonado (KO1, Oct. 12, 2019)
Win: Muhammed Lawal (TKO3, April 21, 2019)
Win: Brandon Halsey (TKO1, Dec. 31, 2018)
And the winner is …
“I believe Prochazka is an enormous downside, due to his tempo, his chin and his coronary heart,” mentioned Muhammed Lawal, coach at American High Workforce. “His weak point would in all probability be cage work, as a result of he spent a lot time in Japan combating in a hoop. I really feel like if Reyes is sensible, he’ll put him towards the cage. The factor is, Jiri is so lengthy and in good situation, throws plenty of punches and kicks. It may be an attention-grabbing battle.”
To see how a number of coaches break down this battle and predict the winner, go here.
The way to watch the fights
Watch all the card on ESPN2. Do not have ESPN2? Get instant access.
The entire fights are additionally obtainable on ESPN+. If you do not have ESPN+, get it here. Additionally: Download the ESPN App | WatchESPN | TV schedule
There’s additionally FightCenter, which presents reside updates for each UFC card.
Saturday’s battle card
ESPN2/ESPN+, 10 p.m. ET
Dominick Reyes vs. Jiri Prochazka | Gentle heavyweight
Cub Swanson vs. Giga Chikadze | Males’s featherweight
Ion Cutelaba vs. Dustin Jacoby | Gentle heavyweight
Sean Strickland vs. Krzysztof Jotko | Middleweight
Merab Dvalishvili vs. Cody Stamann | Males’s bantamweight
Poliana Botelho vs. Luana Carolina | Girls’s flyweight
ESPN2/ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET
Randa Markos vs. Luana Pinheiro | Strawweight
Gabriel Benitez vs. Jonathan Pearce | Males’s featherweight
Kai Kamaka III vs. TJ Brown | Males’s featherweight
Loma Lookboonmee vs. Sam Hughes | Strawweight
Luke Sanders vs. Felipe Colares | Males’s featherweight
Andreas Michailidis vs. KB Bhullar | Middleweight
4 extra issues to know (from ESPN Stats & Info)
1. Cub Swanson enters his co-main occasion towards Giga Chikadze on a two-fight win streak after having misplaced his earlier 4 fights. He has 12 wins within the UFC at featherweight, giving him the third most in division historical past behind Max Holloway (17) and Darren Elkins (14). Chikadze went Four-Zero in 2020, making him considered one of simply two UFC featherweights ever to go Four-Zero in a calendar yr. The opposite was Holloway in 2015.
2. Ion Cutelaba, who faces Dustin Jacoby in one other mild heavyweight bout, lands 5.1 vital strikes per minute, the best fee amongst all energetic UFC 205-pounders. However he’s on a two-fight dropping streak, whereas Jacoby has gained two in a row.
Three. Sean Strickland and Krzysztof Jotko will meet in a conflict of middleweights on three-fight profitable streaks. Jotko leads all energetic 185-pounders in takedown protection (87.1%) and has the third-most complete strikes landed (1,Zero14), trailing solely Kevin Holland (1,195) and Derek Brunson (1,015).
Four. Merab Dvalishvili, who faces Cody Stamann, is on a five-fight profitable streak. He has 41 takedowns, essentially the most of any energetic UFC bantamweight, and has the second-highest management time proportion (44.5%).
ESPN’s Jeff Wagenheim contributed to this battle preview.