SWEET ’N POWER
Pereira vs Hill deserves top billing
MORE than 30 years in the making, UFC 300 is out to prove it is more than just a number as the most stacked card in company history looks to land the all-time pay-perview No.1 spot.
Speculation ran wild for months as president Dana White slowly teased out the line-up for the Las Vegas blockbuster, but finally, in the words of cage announcer Bruce Buffer, it’s time.
While nearly every clash has been carefully curated by White’s matchmakers, many fans were hoping for a return from an MMA legend in the top slot.
However, here I breakdown why Alex Pereira versus Jamahal Hill features two improbable stars who fully deserve the chance to become undeniable in the main event.
Since Jon Jones, who virtually dominated the previous 10 years, vacated the light-heavyweight title in August 2020, the belt has become something of a hot potato or, at worse, even an injury curse.
The 205lb crown has bounced from Jan Blachowicz to Glover Teixeira to Jiri Prochazka to Hill before finally coming to rest on the shaven head of Pereira.
Both Prochazka (shoulder) and Hill (Achilles) suffered serious injuries outside the octagon that saw them relinquish the title without making a defence. The highlight of this chaotic period was Teixeira’s reign, the Brazilian legend finally climbing to the top of the tree at the age of 42, and he is also the glue that binds the UFC 300 show closer.
The now-retired Teixeira and fellow countryman Pereira are close pals – they often prank each other and post the deed online – and training partners with ‘Poatan,’ already a former middleweight champion and making just his eighth appearance in the UFC at the T-Mobile Arena, picking up so much so fast from the MMA veteran.
Having made his combat sports name in kickboxing, every Pereira cage fight immediately felt big time, especially his double-header with Israel Adesanya and, at 36, he will be looking to make the most of his time in the spotlight. ‘Poatan,’ which means ‘Stone Hands’ in Tupi, avenged Teixeira’s defeat to Prochazka to claim the title last November at UFC 295 by second-round KO thanks to some concussive elbows.
Now American Hill, 32, who picked up the vacant belt in a bloody fiveround beatdown of Teixeira in January 2023, is the next man on Pereira’s hit list.
The current champion cornered his good friend that night and had a brief but intense staredown in the octagon afterwards with ‘Sweet Dreams,’ who is finally back after an injury nightmare, having snapped his Achilles playing basketball.
The seeds were planted during that brief face-off and White will be hoping that growing resentment blossoms into a fitting finale for UFC 300 – and perhaps another dominant champion emerges.