Alex Pereira stops Jiri Prochazka in second-round TKO at UFC 303 after Conor McGregor’s withdrawal

Alex Pereira delivered a vicious left kick to Jiri Prochazka’s head and then pounded the top-ranked challenger 13 seconds into the second round to retain his light-heavyweight championship at UFC 303.

Pereira (11-2) has now beaten Prochazka (30-5-1) twice since November to end any doubts about who reigns in that weight class.

Most of the drama at UFC 303 occurred outside the octagon in the weekend and even the hours leading up to the event.

Officials had to act quickly after a late change was needed in the co-main event when an illness forced Brian Ortega to drop out. Dan Ige was already in Las Vegas training for another fight and wound up taking on Diego Lopes in the lightweight contest.

All three judges scored the fight 29-28 in favour of Lopes (25-6) of Brazil. Ige (18-8), who is from Honolulu but lives in Las Vegas, was cheered loudly for showing up with little notice.

The UFC also scrambled to pair Pereira and Prochazka after scheduled headliner Conor McGregor’s broken toe forced him to withdraw. They were given about two weeks to prepare after Pereira had his Australia vacation disrupted and Prochazka was interrupted while at a three-day meditation retreat.

Even without McGregor, this fight could have been the richest in UFC history. A packed crowd of 18,881 that included New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, sitting next to former Green Bay Packers team-mate Marcedes Lewis, watched.

Pereira and Prochazka engaged in a lengthy stare-down that carried through Bruce Buffer’s fighter introductions and referee Herb Dean’s instructions.

Both fighters spent the opening round feeling each other out, but there was a strong hint of what was to come as it ended. Pereira knocked down Prochazka with a left hand, albeit after the bell, before finishing the job to open the second round.

The bout was a rematch from November 11 at New York’s Madison Square Garden when Pereira won the championship with a technical knockout at 4:08 of the second round to claim the vacated light-heavyweight title.

Then Pereira cemented his hold on the belt by beating previous title holder Jamahal Hill with a first-round stoppage in UFC 300 on April 13 in Las Vegas. On the same card, Prochazka recorded a second-round TKO of Aleksandar Rakic to put himself in position for the earlier-than-expected rematch.

Mayra Bueno Silva (10-4-1) suffered a gash so big in her bantamweight fight that the ring doctor called the fight at 1:58 of the second round in favour of Macy Chiasson (11-3). Blood poured down Silva’s face, although she asked to continue.