“He's a little bit like Conor McGregor” - Jiří Procházka gives a sneak peek into the former UFC champion’s ‘wild’ side

Jiří Procházka is set to take on Alex Pereira this Saturday for the vacant UFC light heavyweight title. The pair will headline UFC 295 in a highly anticipated bout. Part of the intrigue behind their match is the Czech phenom's adoption of the Bushido code of conduct. But as it turns out, he was once like Conor McGregor.

Ahead of Jiří Procházka's UFC 275 title fight with Glover Teixeira, whom he defeated for light heavyweight gold, one of 'Denisa's' closest friends, Michal Sauer, revealed in a 2022 ESPN interview that he wasn't always a follower of a strict martial arts-based lifestyle. Instead, he was a heavy drinker and frequent partygoer:

Sauer recounted the following about the former UFC light heavyweight champion:

"He was wild at those parties. Not only dancing, but everyone was watching him. He's a little bit like Conor McGregor. Everybody knows that he's in the room. He was very noisy. He likes attention. Not only parties, but he liked attention everywhere he went. He was a very funny guy and everybody liked it, because he made some fun."

The comparison draws upon Conor McGregor's documented love of drinking and partying, as the Irishman is often pictured and filmed drinking and enjoying the finer things in life. However, Jiří Procházka, who once used to take part in 30-on-30 street fights, has walked away from that life.

Now, 'Denisa' is focused on becoming the best martial artist possible. He aims to return to the peak of the 205-pound division by recapturing the divisional strap that he never lost inside the octagon.

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How quickly did Jiří Procházka earn his first title shot?

Jiří Procházka and Alex Pereira are similar in that they won their respective UFC titles after spending fairly little time in the promotion. The Czech phenom challenged Glover Teixeira for the light heavyweight title after just two fights in the UFC, during which he knocked out Volkan Oezdemir and Dominick Reyes.

Meanwhile, Alex Pereira earned his lone crack at the UFC middleweight championship after three fights in the promotion. He TKO'd Andreas Michailidis, defeated his fellow countryman, Bruna Silva, via unanimous decision, and knocked out Sean Strickland to book a bout with Israel Adesanya, which he won.