Jamahal Hill discredits Khalil Rountree Jr. after UFC 307, addresses detractors: “Not in my bracket!”
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill has heard the noise from those who believe Khalil Rountree Jr. would beat him after watching UFC 307.
Rountree lost to UFC light heavyweight champ Alex Pereira in the UFC 307 main event earlier this month. After nearly finishing Pereira in the opening rounds, Pereira put a torrid pace on Rountree as the fight went on, battering him and finishing him in Round 4.
Hill was cage-side for Pereira’s win over Rountree. He was supposed to face Rountree in a potential No. 1 contender fight at UFC 303 before the bout fell apart.
Hill was caught on camera yawning in a now-viral clip in reaction to Pereira’s performance. He’s been heavily criticized by fans and pundits who felt the fight surpassed competitive expectations.
Following UFC 307, some of Hill’s online opponents have picked Rountree to beat him after watching his first UFC title fight performance.
Jamahal Hill: I would’ve beaten Khalil Rountree Jr. worse than Alex Pereira did
In a recent interview with SportsKeeda, Hill hit back at his detractors who believe Rountree would beat him after watching UFC 307.
“The way that Pereira beat Khalil, for one, Pereira couldn’t beat me fighting that way. And two, that’s how I would’ve beat Khalil from the jump. He would’ve gotten beat like that, even earlier in the fight,” Hill said. “Pieced up with hands? C’mon bro, that’s what I do. People got recency bias and things like that. If anybody thinks that Khalil is on my level, let’s see him go and win a fight. Because he’s not even…we’re not even in the same bracket right now. He got a title shot just because he was an easy mark for the champ, he’s a favorable matchup for the champ…
“He’s No. 8, coming off a loss…I’m in the Top 5. He’s gotta get a win before he gets up and before that’s even a thing,” Hill continued. “And if he does get a win, and even if that does materialize to be a thing, bet [$1 million] on it. Bet your house on it. Real talk, I bet nobody going to bet nothing that they really want to lose on that. Nobody’s taking that bet.”
Hill hasn’t fought since a knockout loss to Pereira at UFC 300. Before that, he won the then-vacant light heavyweight title by defeating Glover Teixeira at UFC 283.
Rountree, as of this writing, has yet to respond to Hill’s latest remarks. He’s targeting a return to the Octagon in 2025 and has called a clash with Hill “inevitable”.
Pereira will likely face the Magomed Ankalaev vs. Aleksandar Rakić winner for his next title defense. But, Hill and Rountree remain in the mix, and bad blood is beginning to boil between them.
