Jiri Prochazka has a wild theory about Jamahal Hill's Achilles injury that forced him to vacate LHW belt

Jiri Prochazka recently weighed in on Jamahal Hill's unfortunate Achilles heel injury and offered an unusual theory that could explain how it happened.

The former light heavyweight champion has been on the recovery road since a nasty shoulder injury sidelined him from competition and forced him to vacate the title. The vacant belt was later claimed by Hill, who defeated Glover Teixeira at UFC 283 in January. However, Hill's reign was short-lived as he tore his Achilles tendon during a game of basketball in mid-July.

Jamahal Hill announced that he would also vacate the title and ruled out the possibility of a fight against Jiri Prochazka anytime soon. While 'Sweet Dreams' explained his injury as a result of a hooping match gone wrong, 'Denisa' recently offered an alternative explanation.

In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Jiri Prochazka claimed that Jamahal Hill's recent weight gain played a role in causing his injury. He said:

"My reaction was, ‘What are you doing, man? It doesn’t matter, but everyone I saw he had big weight, he [gained weight], and especially for the ankles and all of these areas like the knees, for the body, it’s a big weight. If you turn your weight to more than normal, then the knees and ankles, it’s bad. That was the first logical [explanation] about that."

Catch Prochazka's comments below (9:15):

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Jiri Prochazka on potential title fight against Alex Pereira

In the same interview, Jiri Prochazka also opened up about a potential fight against Alex Pereira for the vacant light heavyweight title.

'Poatan' recently defeated Jan Blachowicz in a three-round war at UFC 291 this past weekend. Securing a split-decision victory, Pereira used his post-fight octagon interview to call for a championship opportunity. Similarly, Prochazka revealed he expects to fight the Brazilian next with the vacant 205-pound strap on the line.

In the above-mentioned interview with Ariel Helwani, Jiri Prochazka clarified that while nothing is confirmed, he'd like to fight Alex Pereira before the end of the year. Upon being asked for his thoughts on the matchup, he said:

"Sure... It's not confirmed yet from the UFC, but my next fight will be [for] the title, so I think Alex has a very good chance to show the world a good title fight. I like to see him as an opponent in my next fight."

Prochazka is on an incredible 13-fight career win streak and is undefeated in the UFC. He last beat Glover Teixeira for the light heavyweight title in a fight that won the 'Fight of the Year' award in 2022.