Matchmaker Monday following UFC Vegas 25
UFC Vegas 25 showed that there’s a new contender in the light heavyweight division and his name is Jiri Prochazka.
On Saturday, Prochazka landed a perfect timed spinning elbow that knocked former two-time title challenger Dominick Reyes out cold.
Prochazka, who was the inaugural Rizin light heavyweight champion, now likely in the drivers seat for a championship opportunity. Meanwhile, Reyes is now on a three-fight losing streak and is desperately in need of win.
Let’s find out what’s next for the two men involved Saturday’s main event on this Matchmaker Monday.
Jiri Prochazka
Result: defeated Dominic Reyes by first-round KO at UFC Vegas 25
Next: winner of Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira
Prochazka is hard to deny. Just look at his accomplishments.
The last time he suffered a loss was 2015. He made his UFC debut last summer on Fight Island at UFC 251 and bursted onto the scene by knocking out Volkan Oezdemir. Now he knocked out Reyes to give him a 2-0 record in the promotion with both wins coming against former title challengers.
Following the victory, Blachowicz said on twitter that if he beats Teixeira in September, then Prochazka is next in line. When a champion calls out a contender the UFC will book the fight nearly every time so Prochazka is definitely going to rooting for Polish power at UFC 266.
Dominick Reyes
Result: lost to Jiri Prochazka by first-round KO at UFC Vegas 25
Next: Nikita Krylov
Reyes is a really bad spot.
He lost a hard fought fight to Jon Jones and then got knocked out in back-to-back fights to put on a three fight losing skid. Right now he needs a win desperately.
I’m picking his next fight to come against Krylov, but I’m basing that from a rankings stand point. After three straight losses, Reyes will not be fighting a top contender next. That means that he’ll be fighting anyone ranked from No. 7 to No. 10 in his next outing.
Krylov is in a spot where he’s been fighting high level guys and flip-flopping wins and losses. Both need a win to move up in the rankings in order to claw into what’s slowly becoming a crowded division. Seems like its a meaningful fight for both guys. Plus it’s a fun matchup for the fans.
