UFC 303 LIVE: Pereira vs Prochazka fight updates and results after Dan Ige steps in on four hours’ notice

This week, Indy Sport interviewed Robert Whittaker (who may or may not be this writer’s favourite fighter, dating back to said writer’s pre-journalistic days. Of course, no bias anymore...).

Here’s what the former middleweight champion had to say about starching Ikram Aliskerov, his cancelled clash with Khamzat Chimaev, his next fight – and life in general:

Prochazka has called on Pereira not to use “rituals” or “spiritual things” ahead of their main event.

Prochazka is known for his commitment to samurai teachings, but he believes that Pereira’s own pre-fight preparation may be giving him an unfair advantage.

“I think he believes in a lot of things, the help of spiritual things,” said the former champion this week, speaking on The MMA Hour. “That’s something that I think he can’t fight without.

“I want to keep that in a clear line: just sport performance, pure performance, man versus man. I think he doesn’t know how to fight without [spiritual guidance], because he uses these things every time.

“Everybody knows he’s working with some shamans from his hometown. He believes in some spiritual help from them. I believe, too, but I believe in the best human performance – right here, right now, without magic.

“It’s working [for him], but I believe in a clear way; I want to win in that way.”

More here:

Alex Pereira defends his world title against Jiri Prochazka in the main event of UFC 303 tonight, as the light-heavyweights clash for the second time in seven months.

In November, Pereira stopped the former champion in round two, winning the vacant belt in the process. With that, the Brazilian became a two-weight titlist, having previously claimed middleweight gold. Now Prochazka gets a shot at revenge, and another shot at the belt he held in 2022 – before injury cut short the Czech’s reign.

UFC 303, which plays out at Las Vegas’s T-Mobile Arena, was due to be headlined by Conor McGregor vs Michael Chandler, but a broken toe ruled out the Irishman. As such, Pereira and Prochazka step up here, and the rest of the card has also undergone several changes.

In the co-main event, former 145lb title challenger Brian Ortega faces rising contender Diego Lopes. Beforehand, controversial Irish star Ian Machado Garry fights London veteran Michael “Venom” Page.