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Newly crowned UFC light heavyweight champion Jiri Prochazka recently shaved off his fan-favorite hairstyle.
On June 17, “The MMA Hour’s” Ariel Helwani shared a photo of Prochazka shaving his own head. “I cut my hair because I needed to end one chapter of my life,” he said, according to Helwani. “So now I can start with new energy, new wave. Honestly.”
And when asked if he’ll grow the hairstyle back one day, Prochazka answered: “We will see.” See Prochazka shaving his head via the Twitter embed below:
When Prochazka spoke with the media ahead of his fight with Dominick Reyes at UFC on ESPN 23 in May 2021, he was questioned about his hair.
“That’s my antenna to catch the best WiFi,” Prochazka laughed.
Prochazka said his motivation for the hairstyle stemmed from The Mongkhon, the traditional headwear sported by Muay Thai fighters. “I say that it’s war hair… how I’m taking this moment, this fight importantly and seriously,” Prochazka continued. “This is the hair just for this moment.”
Prochazka Took the Light Heavyweight Belt From Glover Teixeira Last Weekend at UFC 275
Then-light heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira stepped into the Octagon at UFC 275 last weekend in Singapore to make his first title defense. He drew Prochazka, the man who earned back-to-back devastating finishes over former UFC title challengers.
And in his third UFC bout, “Denisa” became a world champion. After five grueling, tit-for-tat rounds, Prochazka caught Teixeira in a rear-naked choke with only 28 seconds left on the clock. He tapped out the Brazilian, taking his 205-pound belt.
Prochazka has a professional mixed martial arts record of 29-3-1, which includes 25 wins via KO/TKO and three by submission.
Prochazka Is Prepared to Fight Jan Blachowicz Next, Calls Him ‘The Most Dangerous’ Light Heavyweight Challenger
Although he’s willing to take on anyone that the UFC throws at him, Prochazka could see himself fighting former 205-pound champion Jan Blachowicz next. After losing his belt to Teixeira in October, Blachowicz bounced back last month.
He earned a TKO victory over Aleksandar Rakic after Rakic suffered a knee injury.
Speaking with Ariel Helwani on a recent episode of “The MMA Hour,” Prochazka called Blachowivz his “most dangerous” challenger. But, he could also see himself fighting Teixeira in an immediate rematch.
“I don’t know what’s the preference of the UFC, the organization. I want to communicate more with the UFC, like they want from me,” Prochazka said via MMA Fighting.
“I think the most dangerous man here in the light heavyweight division, after me, under me, there is Jan Blachowicz — and I think he can be the next challenger of me. But still, I have to keep respect for Glover. So one other [option] is to offer the Glover rematch, and the second thing is to fight Jan Blachowicz. I have to make a decision in that, but still, yeah, I have to talk with the UFC and my manager as well, what will be the best step.”
Prochazka and Blachowicz have both shown interest in fighting each other at a European venue, as the former is from the Czech Republic and the latter is Polish. After Prochazka’s win, Blachowicz tweeted: “Jiri, let’s do this! The Battle for Europe. The biggest fight in the Continent’s history.”
And for Denisa, he’d love for his first title defense to be in his home country. “My preference is to do that [next fight] here in Czech Republic,” Prochazka said. “But who knows?
“Like I said, I have to talk with the UFC [about] what will be the best case.”
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