Significant Stats | UFC 295 Procházka vs Pereira

Key Stats: 5.77 strikes landed per minute, 5.4 strikes absorbed per minute, 55% striking accuracy

Order UFC 295: Procházka vs Pereira

What It Means: It almost feels like “unique” is too simple of an adjective to describe the former light heavyweight champion. The mindful, philosophical 31-year-old is also – and this is meant as a compliment – a chaotic bundle of lethal action in the Octagon. At an imposing 6-foot-3 and sporting an 80-inch reach, Procházka is also an explosively athletic marvel. He often stands with his hands down, trusting either a long guard or relying on his head movement before flowing into counters. Sometimes those counterstrikes are conventional, and others are flying knees, wild, wide punches or spinning attacks. Occasionally, Procházka gets himself out of position, but he is usually tough enough or athletic enough to evade lethal danger. Procházka has knockout power and some decent wrestling, as well, but he tends to rely on his unpredictability more than anything.

Alex Pereira

Key Stats: 62% significant strike accuracy (4th all-time), 5.11 strikes landed per minute, 3.7 strikes absorbed per minute

What It Means: “Poatan” is as sharp a kickboxer as anyone who has come into mixed martial arts in the last five years. The former two-division Glory Kickboxing champion hopes to replicate the same results in the Octagon after winning the middleweight belt a year ago in Madison Square Garden. Pereira’s most notable strike is his left hook, which he can set up moving forward or backward. But his offense mostly starts with his leg kicks, which he flicks out without any telegraph whatsoever. Everything he throws, heavy or not, lands with a thud, and he generally has good range management and timing. He is strong in clinch situations and also has a good Thai clinch.

Preview Every Fight On UFC 295: Procházka vs Pereira

What to Look For in the Fight: This fight should play out on the feet, with each man having their moments of pressure and success. Procházka generally puts himself in more danger with his style, but his unique approach could open up some holes for big shots if Pereira isn’t mindful. If Pereira stands his ground early, he could sit down and catch Procházka with the right punch to rock the former champion. It’s unlikely either man will shoot for a takedown, but Procházka has mentioned rounding out his game in his year-and-a-half away from action since winning the belt in June 2022. Essentially, Procházka is the most dangerous unorthodox striker in the division while Pereira is the most fundamentally solid and powerful striker at 205.

Co-Main Event: Sergei Pavlovich vs Tom Aspinall

Sergei Pavlovich

Key Stats: 6.31 knockdowns averaged per 15 minutes (1st all-time), 8.72 strikes landed per minute (2nd all-time), +4.39 striking differential (4th all-time)

What It Means: Pavlovich is as lethal and calculated a slugger as the heavyweight division has right now. The 31-year-old has an explosive right hand, and the way he loads it for his overhand and his long uppercut looks eerily similar and often catches opponents off-guard. Even his jab has thudding power, and he understands he doesn’t need to fire off a lot of punches to get the job done. Once his opponent is hurt, Pavlovich swarms and does not give his foe a lot of space to recover.

Tom Aspinall

Key Stats: 2:19 average fight time (shortest all-time), 7.65 strikes landed per minute (3rd all-time), +4.75 striking differential (2nd all-time)

What It Means: Aside from Ciryl Gane, Tom Aspinall is probably the smoothest moving heavyweight in the division. Light on his feet and mindful of that movement, Aspinall displays great speed with his hands, as well. Although he has strong kicks, his boxing is his best weapon when striking, and he can land thudding knees and elbows in the clinch. Although he hasn’t shown it much, Aspinall has a solid ground game and has shown good timing on takedowns. He also has a black belt in jiu jitsu and has shown a great knowledge of what to do once he gets his opponent down to the mat.

UFC 295 Countdown: Full Episode | Jiří Procházka vs Alex Pereira | Sergei Pavlovich vs Tom Aspinall

What to Look For in the Fight: Essentially, this fight profiles as speed (Aspinall) versus power (Pavlovich), but Aspinall’s grappling makes for an interesting mix of skills. Pavlovich has shown good timing on uppercuts, as well as a solid defensive grappling game stemming from his Greco-Roman and sambo background. Pavlovich has a 7-foot wingspan which he uses well, and Aspinall will have to rely on his footwork to walk Pavlovich into some strikes or takedowns. We haven’t seen much of Pavlovich on the ground, so it’s hard to say how the fight would go once it gets there. It’s also crucial that neither man has gone past the first minute of the second round, so if this fight goes past that point, it’ll be interesting to see how each man responds, considering their abbreviated training camp.

Other Fights to Watch (Jéssica Andrade vs Mackenzie Dern)

Jéssica Andrade

Key Stats: 76.2% takedown defense (5th all-time among WSW), 6.4 strikes landed per minute (2nd all-time among WSW), 53.5% takedown accuracy (4th all-time among WSW)

Free Fights: Pereira vs Adesanya 1 | Procházka vs Teixeira | Pavlovich vs Blaydes | Aspinall vs Tybura

What It Means: The former strawweight champion is one of the hardest hitters in the division, and she trusts in her power when she enters the pocket. She is immensely strong, physically, and has a reputation for going in for a single-leg and slamming her opponents to the ground with great force. She has an educated ground game, and she can finish the fight with a submission or strike from any position.

Mackenzie Dern