Alex Pereira of Brazil embraces Jiri Prochazka of the Czech Republic in the UFC light heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 295 event at Madison Square Garden on November 11, 2023 in New York City. AFP PIC
Alex Pereira of Brazil embraces Jiri Prochazka of the Czech Republic in the UFC light heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 295 event at Madison Square Garden on November 11, 2023 in New York City. AFP PIC

NEW YORK: Alex Pereira knocked out Jiri Prochazka on Saturday to claim the light heavyweight championship in the main event at UFC 295 in New York.

Pereira (9-2-0) sent Prochazka to the mat with a right hook before using a barrage of elbows to earn the victory at 4:08 of the second round. The Brazilian has now won back-to-back UFC bouts after a loss to Israel Adesanya on Apr 8.

It was a fairly even fight until the knockdown, as Pereira held narrow advantages in total strikes (49-44), significant strikes (38-30) and shots to the head (21-18).

In another title fight, Tom Aspinall (14-3-0) secured the interim heavyweight belt by beating Sergei Pavlovich (18-2-0) via knockout.

Other winners today included Jessica Andrade (25-12-0), Benoit Saint Denis (13-1-0) and Diego Lopes (23-6-0). –Field Level Media