5 reasons why Jamahal Hill might be the dark horse to watch in the UFC light heavyweight division

#2. Jamahal Hill’s long reach makes him tricky to fight against

Jamahal Hill owns a reach advantage over most of his peers at 205 lbs.

It’s tricky to fully substantiate Jamahal Hill’s claim that he has the ‘best hands in the UFC’. However, it’s definitely fair to say that thus far, his striking has served him well in the octagon. Hill has a total of five UFC victories to his name, discounting a marijuana-based No Contest; impressively, four of them have come via knockout or TKO.

One factor that definitely plays into Hill’s striking skills being so dangerous is his lengthy reach and height. While ‘Sweet Dreams’ can’t quite match former champion Jon Jones in this aspect, he is taller than most of the other fighters in his division, and his 79” reach gives him an advantage over most too.

Current champion Glover Teixeira, for instance, would be at a 3” disadvantage against ‘Sweet Dreams’. Meanwhile, former champion Jan Blachowicz would be at a 1” disadvantage. Hot prospect Magomed Ankalaev only has a 75” reach, as does Volkan Oezdemir. Elsewhere, Dominick Reyes and Aleksandar Rakic don’t measure up to Hill either.

In fact, the only fighter in the UFC’s light heavyweight top ten to hold a reach advantage over Hill is Jiri Prochazka. That might go some way to explaining why his own striking has been so devastating thus far.

Essentially, Hill’s length and reach would make him a tricky match for any fighter in the world at 205 lbs. So his boast that he can touch any opponent he faces probably isn’t that far off. That makes him a genuine threat to the UFC light heavyweight title.

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#1. Jamahal Hill carries one-shot knockout power

Jamahal Hill possesses scary knockout power in his strikes.

A fighter needs much more than simple punching power to reach the top of the UFC these days. However, possessing the ability to knock out an opponent in one shot is obviously a pretty huge weapon to possess.

It’s debatable if Hill hits harder than the likes of Jiri Prochazka and Jan Blachowicz. However, it’s definitely fair to say that the former carries brutal knockout power in his hands.

Of his ten career wins, six have come via KO or TKO, including four thus far into his tenure with the UFC. More to the point, though, ‘Sweet Dreams’ isn’t a volume striker who breaks down his opponents gradually. His knockouts of Ovince St. Preux and Jimmy Crute were remarkably brutal, with both men being switched off basically in one punch.

More recently, his finish of Johnny Walker was astonishing. The right hand that sent the Brazilian crashing into the fence didn’t even appear to land cleanly, instead connecting largely with the side of Walker’s head.

Any fighter who can take out an opponent in this way with one single shot can never truly be counted out of a fight, even if they seem overmatched in all other areas.

Considering the same, it’s difficult not to see Jamahal Hill as a dark horse to fight for the UFC light heavyweight title – if not win it – in the near future.