Pereira successfully defends UFC light heavyweight belt after knocking out Hill

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Alex Pereira just proved to the entire world who is the best Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter in the 205-lbs division after knocking out former champion Jamahal Hill in the opening round of their UFC 300 main event clash on April 14, 2024, at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

With the win, Pereira just defended his light heavyweight championship belt and only needed three minutes to dispose Hill, who was the previous belt holder of the division.

After match referee Herb Dean momentarily stopped the fight to call Hill’s attention when he accidentally landed a below-the-belt kick to Pereira, the intensity of the fight started to ramp up as the champion went forward to apply pressure.

Little did Hill know that Pereira was hiding his vicious left hook that landed straight to his jaw. After the impact, the challenger went down to the canvas and was in deep trouble.

Pereira then smelled blood and jumped right to Hill’s top position and finished the fight with a barrage of ground and pound punches.

It was a silent start to their main event bout as both fighters gauged each other by throwing conservative leg kicks.

Pereira drew first blood after hitting Hill with a solid kick to his femur while following it up with a soft right straight punch.

After several seconds, Hill retaliated and found his desired hitting distance, scoring back-to-back leg kicks that evened the scorecards.

Unfortunately for Hill, his momentum snapped after Mr. Dean caught him throwing a below-the-belt kick that generated Pereira’s move to press forward.

With the win, Pereira just improved his UFC record to 10 wins and two losses while Hill dropped to 12 wins and two losses.