Prochazka has been one of the most dominant forces competing outside the UFC for quite some time and now he’s bringing his skills to the Octagon. The 27-year-old from the Czech Republic heads into his UFC 251 showdown with Volkan Oezdemir riding a 10-fight winning streak, having won 15 of his last 16 appearances and having successfully avenged that lone defeat, while boasting an incredible 20-1-1 record dating since the middle of 2013.
As I’ve said many times: it doesn’t matter who you’re fighting or where — posting those kinds of results is noteworthy and deserves attention.
Prochazka has spent the last several years tearing things up under the Rizin Fighting Federation banner, winning the Japanese promotion’s light heavyweight title in April 2019 and successfully defending it against long-time UFC competitor CB Dollaway at the close of last year. He’s gone to the scorecards only once during the course of his current winning streak and holds victories over former Strikeforce champ “King” Mo Lawal, Satoshi Ishii, Vadim Nemkov, and Fabio Maldonado.
Long considered a potential impact addition to the UFC’s 205-pound weight class, Saturday provides an instant opportunity to see where the dangerous new arrival fits.
After enduring a three-fight losing streak that began with his championship clash against Daniel Cormier at UFC 220 in January 2018, Oezdemir has since rebounded with back-to-back victories to solidify his place in the Top 10. The Swiss standout earned a second-round stoppage victory over Ilir Latifi last August and closed out his 2019 campaign with a split decision win over Aleksandar Rakic on the final card of the year, bringing his record inside the Octagon to 5-3 and re-establishing him as a fixture in the championship chase.
Beating someone of Oezdemir’s pedigree in his promotional debut would instantly thrust Prochazka into the title conversation in the light heavyweight ranks, especially if he does so in the same impressive manner he’s been settling opponents in Japan.
Regardless of how this one plays out, though, Prochazka is a name to remember and a fighter to watch going forward because whether it happens right away or after a brief acclimation period, “Denisa” is destined to be a contender.
