Poor performance? Nowhere. From the point of view of fighter David Dvořák, this was certainly not the case in Jiří Procházka’s performance. Although he caught a nice line of punches in the first round, it was quite possibly a premeditated tactic before the next few minutes of the fight, which ultimately did not happen. It was decided after thirteen seconds of the second five-minute period. “Maybe the plan was to take a peek and wait to see what Pereira comes up with. In the end, it ended earlier,” regrets Dvořák.
Leaving aside the result of the match, how did you feel about the match?
At the time of the tournament, I was in the Nova Sport studio, where the guys put the camera directly on us to see our reactions during the fight. Soon there will be visual material that people will be able to look at, how much we experienced it. Unfortunately, a few obscene words escaped me, which I otherwise watch on TV. We really cheered with Michal Martínek and Karlos Vémola, but it didn’t turn out the way we wanted. It was also visible in our reactions.
Are you very disappointed with the result?
I’m not at all disappointed with Jiří’s performance, not at all. I wanted him to get the title, which is one of the two things I regret. The second is that he quite possibly suffered some injuries. Apparently a concussion; and I thought he stepped on his foot there, which I hope is nothing serious and will be fine. Otherwise, I can’t think of anything I could fault him for.
Not even the end of the first round, when he didn’t watch the last second, which probably cost him the match?
Anytime you lose, there’s always room for error. Karlos (Vémola) said it well. He said that this is our sport, where seconds decide. I don’t think that Jiří would be inattentive there, but until you step into the cage and see how it flies extremely fast at the top level, you won’t even connect what actually happened there. All it takes is a blink of the eye and a blow that cannot be seen will fly out of nowhere. That could happen here too. With Pereira, it just goes to show how awfully good he is in what kind of eye he has and how he can hit shots from the open.
So a fantastic performance from the Brazilian?
He performed an extra great job. He was at his good distance, working as he needed. I think he didn’t want to be pressured by Jiří and didn’t want to clinch and wrestle so much. In the end, he pushed away from Jiří with a good dial and then went about his business. He proved how excellent he is.
Did the ending of the first round affect the subsequent thirteen seconds, when Procházka finally failed to stop a kick to the head?
I originally thought not. Jiří gave me the impression that he was fine. We’ve seen a lot of matches where he looked like he was worse off and turned it around calmly. But then the guys in the studio told me that Jiří showed that he was fine only when he sat down in a chair. He must have been very shaken. I experienced it myself. If a person receives such a blow that shakes him, it will not only affect his physique, but also the fact that every other blow, even a small one, will shake him again. It’s the brain’s defense mechanism to keep the body from getting hurt.
Was the ending of the duel correct for you from the referee’s point of view?
I would have preferred that match to have ended earlier. There were an awful lot of blows, quite unnecessary. But the first match was said to be stopped early, but referee Herb Dean is stopping the matches later. There was certainly pressure from the UFC to keep it longer and there was no doubt. Then it happened that way too.
Wasn’t it a surprise to you that Procházka, despite knowing his opponent’s biggest weapon was in stance, didn’t try to go to the ground?
It was. I expected the scenario to be similar to the first duel, when Jiří was extremely varied. He signaled takedowns, walked jacks, kicks and switched zones. He managed to grab one leg, throw and control the opponent. I expected the same now. And before the fateful knockdown came, it seemed to me that Jiří wanted a more lukewarm start. First, take a look and wait for what Pereira comes up with, and don’t rush anywhere unnecessarily. It ended up ending early, so we don’t know if it was actually planned.
Photo: Mark J. Rebilas, Reuters
Celebrating Alex Pereira after his win over Jiří Procházka at UFC 303
It didn’t work out against Pereira again for Procházek, who also lost the title. What would you recommend him now?
To be honest, I don’t think I’m competent enough to advise Jiří, but if I take it in general, an athlete after a hard KO needs to be checked by a neurologist to find out if the head is fine. Accordingly, set a break from sparring so that the head does not receive further blows. Overall, put the body in a heap, because it seemed to me that Jiří put his foot there. I hope nothing like that happened and it will be fine. I would choose rest, perhaps going to see my family and doing things that one likes. When Jiří feels better, he will return to training. I am confident that we will see him with someone in the top five by the end of the year.
Who would you like?
Personally, I would like Jan Blachowicz the most. It is a legend, their match was much speculated but never happened. For me, it would be an interesting match up, especially if there was a tournament in England, for example. It would be a huge match for the Europeans.
Pereira, on the other hand, shot up the light heavyweight division and talked about wanting to move up to the heavyweight division. Logical?
I think heavyweight would be great. Alex now gained some twelve kilos before the match with Jiří, so he was around 105 kg in normal match weight, which is really a lot. If he could gain another 5-7 kilos in the fight camp, he’ll be around 112, which is great for a heavyweight. And if he wins a third title, he could be the first to do so. I would really like him to.
A fight with the legendary Jon Jones, who rules the heavyweight division, is offered.
That would be great, although I think Jon would pitch it. But then again, we know how Jon struggles often. At the same time, he is not a completely stable person in terms of psyche. Rather, I think that Tom Aspinall should become the rightful champion in the future.
2024-06-30 09:00:43
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