Jiri Prochazka has arrived. The native of the Republic of Georgia established himself as a legit UFC mild heavyweight contender Saturday night time by knocking out Dominick Reyes with a spinning elbow.
It was essentially the most spectacular efficiency on a card with a number of ranked fighters competing.
ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, Marc Raimondi and Jeff Wagenheim break down the largest storylines from Saturday’s Battle Evening in Las Vegas.
Helwani: Prochazka’s subsequent combat ought to be for title
There is a new contender within the mild heavyweight division, and he is a rattling entertaining one, too.
Jiří Procházka is a promoter’s dream: he’s distinctive, enjoyable, wild and highly effective.
He is additionally acquired an excellent look — I imply, that hair is simply large — and he is now gained 12 in a row.
And what a solution to prolong his UFC document to 2-Zero. His combat — or ought to I say brawl? — in opposition to Dominick Reyes on Saturday is one we’ll be speaking about in December throughout award season, for certain.
That spinning elbow KO, simply the third in UFC historical past, was as surprising because it was stunning. That first spherical was thrilling because it was brutal.
It was every part Procházka wanted to cement his spot as a legit participant in a wide-open mild heavyweight division.
In fact, we all know mild heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz will defend his title in opposition to Glover Teixeira on Sept. Four. That is a performed deal.
So, the query now’s, do you save Procházka for the winner, or dare to match him up in opposition to somebody within the interim?
If he is down with it, I might save him. His fashion is just too wild, and that win was too nice to danger him in opposition to anybody else. There are definitely choices on the market, like Aleksander Rakić or Anthony Smith, however I might hold Procházka on ice. Have him combat the winner of Blachowicz-Teixeira, replay this combat as many occasions as you possibly can and hope his hair appears even higher when he fights for the belt.
And yeah, I do know the UFC does not normally give title pictures after two fights, however while you KO the likes of Volkan Oezdemir and Reyes like he has thus far, to say nothing of his pre-UFC success, you’ve got performed sufficient.
As for Reyes, how will you not really feel for him? A little bit over a yr in the past, he ought to have defeated the nice Jon Jones to win the sunshine heavyweight title. As a substitute, the judges in Texas sided with Jones. Then, he will get knocked out by Blachowicz in his try to win the vacant 205-pound title, and now this.
The combat recreation is a merciless one. Sooner or later you are a beforehand undefeated fighter shedding an oh-so-close choice to the best mild heavyweight ever, and the following you are on the receiving finish of a highlight-reel knockout in opposition to a surging star.
Raimondi: Giga Chikadze will get signature win with signature kick
Through the pandemic, it appeared like Giga Chikadze was combating each few weeks. Chikadze stepped into the Octagon 5 occasions between September 2019 and November 2020 and gained each bout. He was Four-Zero final yr alone. In his final bout, Chikadze lastly picked up his first end, a first-round TKO over Jamey Simmons final November.
All of these 5 have been good victories. However Chikadze was lacking one factor to make him a real featherweight contender: a signature win over an enormous title. The Republic of Georgia native has that now. Chikadze dispatched Cub Swanson, a featherweight stalwart, with a liver kick and punches Saturday in simply 63 seconds. Chikadze has nicknamed that physique kick the “Giga kick” from his time in Glory Kickboxing. And he used it to choose up the largest win of his profession at UFC Battle Evening: Reyes vs. Prochazka.
The one factor to do now’s give Chikadze a contender combat. He has gained six straight with two knockouts in a row. The karate black belt is a legit pressure at 145 kilos — there is no longer any doubt about that. I might like to see him in there with somebody like Calvin Kattar, Arnold Allen and even fellow prospect Bryce Mitchell subsequent.
Wagenheim: Merab Dvalishvili is making his transfer
Previous to the explosive knockouts in the principle occasion and co-main, this was an evening of choices, selections and extra selections — eight of them by the judges, and one by the referee who dominated a disqualification. That is not sometimes the sort of combat card that will get the followers stirred up, however there truly have been some moments — probably the greatest of them offered by Merab Dvalishvili.
The bantamweight cost of trainers Ray Longo and Matt Serra is perpetual movement. In profitable his sixth straight bout, he threw 306 strikes, surpassing 100 in every of the final two rounds. That is a busy man. However as soon as once more his most important offensive weapon was his relentless pursuit of takedowns.
Dvalishvili landed 5 of 11 takedown makes an attempt, retaining Cody Stamann on the defensive the entire means. That offers the native of the Republic of Georgia 59 takedowns within the UFC, essentially the most ever by a fighter of their first 10 UFC appearances. The factor is, Dvalishvili has had solely eight UFC fights. He has two extra Octagon journeys so as to add to his document whole.
Probably the most important variety of all for Dvalishvili, although, is 5 — his variety of consecutive wins at bantamweight. That offers him the division’s second-longest energetic streak, one behind his teammate Aljamain Sterling, the champ. At 30 years previous, Dvalishvili seems to be heading towards the highest of the load class. And he is making his journey entertaining to look at.