UFC light-heavyweight contender Jamahal Hill will be bringing an interesting name into his training camp.
‘Sweet Dreams’ has been out of action since a knockout victory over Thiago Santos in August. Following that win, Hill was scheduled to face Anthony Smith in March. The pair were expected to headline a Fight Night main event, but that will no longer happen.
Last Saturday night at UFC 282, Jan Blachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev fought to a draw in the main event. As a result, the light-heavyweight title was left vacant. Former titleholder Jiri Prochazka vacated the championship last month after suffering a brutal shoulder injury.
Following the headlining bout, Dana White announced yet another light-heavyweight title fight. During a post-fight press conference, the promoter announced Hill was pulled from his March date with ‘Lionheart’ in favor of a clash with Glover Teixeira. The pair will headline UFC 283 in January in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The announcement caught everyone off-guard, including Jamahal Hill. During a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, the Chicago native admitted he was surprised to get the call. However, he quickly accepted the fight offer and then called Anthony Smith.
According to Hill, the conversation between the two went over well. In fact, Smith will help ‘Sweet Dreams’ prepare for his UFC 283 main event.
“Yeah, I got love for Anthony Smith,” stated Hill on The MMA Hour on Monday. “It’s nothing but respect, he’s always shown nothing but love and respect. I actually wanted to get his number and call him and let him know when I knew, but he was on the desk. But, we’ve talked… I just reached out to him like, ‘Hey man, sorry bro’, but I really don’t have to say much.”
He continued, “He knows, bro. He’s one of the guys, he’s a man, he understands. He would’ve done the same thing. I actually asked him for help in this camp… Yes [he will help in training camp]. It is what it is bro, he’s fought him before. He’s got the size, and he’s one of the bigger guys in the division. I respect his input, and how he views things.”
“All I did was ask, all the credit goes to him for accepting and agreeing to do it.”
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