Jamahal Hill believes Alex Poatan has a real chance of making UFC history by winning an unprecedented three-division title. A declared rival of the Brazilian after being knocked out at UFC 300 , the American acknowledged the potential of the light heavyweight champion (up to 93kg) and assessed that the Brazilian can indeed surpass Tom Aspinall , the current heavyweight champion (up to 120,2 kg).
In an interview with The Schmo, Hill highlighted that Aspinall's recent performance opens the door for this scenario. According to the former light heavyweight champion, the fight against Ciryl Gane showed that the Englishman can be outmatched in striking, especially in boxing, where the Frenchman was successful using his jab and managed to land punches fairly frequently.
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“It’s possible, especially after what we saw in the last fight, Aspinall against Ciryl Gane . You saw Ciryl Gane , how effective his jab was. Tom can be outboxed. There’s a possibility he can be outboxed,” said Jamahal Hill.
Despite this, Hill considered that the challenge would still be extremely complex for Poatan. In the American's view, Aspinall tends to rely on grappling, exploiting the size and physical strength characteristic of the division. He recalled that, although the Brazilian has improved his takedown defense, he has been taken down in the 93 kg category, and stressed that, among heavyweights, opponents can get him up more easily. Still, Hill reinforced that, in fights of this level, everything can be decided with a single strike.
“I still think it’s a tough fight. It’s a complicated request for him, simply because the guy is going to fight by grappling. He’s going to grapple. ‘Poatan’ has already defended takedowns, but he’s also been taken down at 93 kg. These big heavyweight guys are just going to lift him. They really are going to be able to lift him. … It’s possible. All it takes is one punch,” concluded the former champion.
Poatan in the heavyweights
Poatan faces his opponent before fighting in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC
After defeating Magomed Ankalaev and regaining the UFC light heavyweight title, Alex Poatan made it clear that he wants to move up a weight class to try and make history. However, the Brazilian surprised everyone by not directly targeting Tom Aspinall , the current heavyweight champion, and instead projected a possible fight against Jon Jones in his debut in the new division.
While Poatan awaits a decision from the UFC regarding clearance for a weight class change, Aspinall retains his heavyweight title after the no-contest fight against Ciryl Gane at UFC 321, which ended controversially due to an illegal eye poke by the Frenchman.
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Read More about: Alex Poatán, Ciryl Gane, Jamahall Hill, Jon Jones, Tom aspinall, UFC
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