Dominick Reyes vs. Jiri Prochazka is still intact. The light heavyweight scrap just has a new date.
The highly anticipated fight, Prochazka’s second inside the octagon, will now take place on May 1. Originally, the bout had been expected to headline a Fight Night event on February 27. However, earlier this month, Reyes reportedly suffered an undisclosed injury, resulting in the heavyweight bout between Ciryl Gane and Jairzinho Rozenstruik being pull forward.
MMA Junkie was first to report news of the Reyes vs. Prochazka’s shift to May 1. That date does not yet have an official event name/number, location, or venue announced.
Prochazka (26-3-1) tore up the light heavyweight division in Japan’s RIZIN, earning the championship there. Wins over King Mo Lawal, Fabio Maldonado, and CB Dollaway propelled him to a spot in the UFC, where he did not disappoint in his debut. Drawing former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir for his first octagon assignment, Prochazka finished the fight with a knockout punch in the second round.
With that effort, it was no surprise to see the promotion book the Czech fighter opposite another former title challenger. Dominick Reyes has twice fought for gold in the UFC, and twice he has come up short (or once, depending on your feelings about the judging in the Jon Jones fight). In any case, Reyes (12-2) will be looking to bounce back following two straight title fight losses, the most recent to Jan Blachowicz in September.
The UFC’s May 1 event currently consists of the following bouts:
Jiri Prochazka vs. Dominick Reyes
Cub Swanson vs. Gavin Tucker
Damon Jackson vs. T.J. Laramie
Kai Kamaka III vs. T.J. Brown
Mike Jackson vs. Dean Barry
Ji Yeon Kim vs. Poliana Botelho
