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Alex Pereira vs. Jamahal Hill Fight Set For UFC 300 Main Event, Dana White Announces

Tyler Conway@@jtylerconwayX.com LogoFeatured Columnist IVFebruary 18, 2024

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 11: Alex Pereira of Brazil poses for a portrait after defeating Jiri Prochazka of the Czech Republic in the UFC light heavyweight championship fight during the UFC 295 event at Madison Square Garden on November 11, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

UFC president Dana White announced Alex Pereira will defend his light heavyweight title against Jamahal Hill in the UFC 300 main event.

ESPN MMA @espnmma

Alex Pereira will face Jamahal Hill in the main event of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/UFC300?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#UFC300</a>, Dana White announced. <a href="https://t.co/hPmgj3m3c9">pic.twitter.com/hPmgj3m3c9</a>

UFC 300 had been surprisingly without a main event with less than two months until the historic April 13 pay-per-view. Justin Gaethje's matchup against Max Holloway for the symbolic BMF championship had been the highest-profile fight on the card.

"We were out there talking to lots of people, trying to make lots of fights. In this business, it's about taking opportunities," White said Saturday. "Headlining UFC 300 with all of the buzz and all the energy around it ... We've been talking about 300 forever. We were just trying to make the best fights we could possibly make. We had two more fights to make, and we were trying to put on two badass fights. These two guys are it."

Pereira will be making his first defense of the light heavyweight crown after defeating Jiří Procházka for the vacant title at UFC 295 in November.

Hill will be attempting to recapture the gold he lost due to injury after suffering a torn Achilles playing basketball last summer. He defeated Glover Teixeira at UFC 283 last January to earn his first career championship.

The light heavyweight championship has been somewhat cursed since Jon Jones vacated his spot atop the division in 2020. There have been five different champions since but only one successful defense.

Procházka and Hill, the last two champions before Pereira, had to vacate before ever having a single defense.

Neither Hill nor Pereira have ever lost fighting in the light heavyweight division. While neither are the type of household names you might expect from UFC's 300th pay-per-view extravaganza, odds are the fight itself will more than live up to the hype.