Prochazka destroys Reyes with spinning elbow in UFC main event

Jiri Prochazka scored a violent finish in his first UFC headliner.

Prochazka knocked out Dominick Reyes with a spinning back elbow at the 4:29 mark of the second round in the light heavyweight main event of UFC Fight Night on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

It was the third spinning-back-elbow knockout in UFC history, according to Fight Metric's Michael Carroll.

Prochazka, who was ranked No. 5 in the division before taking out No. 3 Reyes, is likely next in line for a title shot against the winner of champion Jan Blachowicz versus Glover Teixeira. That fight is scheduled for September.

"I'm ready," Prochazka said in his postfight interview when asked if he wants to fight for the belt next. "Let's do that. ... That's a big honor for me."

Though it only lasted into the second round, Prochazka-Reyes could be looked back on as one of the year's wildest fights.

Prochazka constantly swarmed his opponent with flurries of strikes, hurting him multiple times before the fight-ending blow. Reyes took the damage well and fired back with solid counter shots, but he couldn't absorb the elbow.

"I just want to show the beauty of the art, but sometimes I go very quickly for the win," Prochazka said. "By (doing) that, I catch some punches. That's mistakes, but I'm learning still from fight to fight."

With the victory, Prochazka is now 2-0 in the UFC after knocking out former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir in his debut last July. He's riding a 12-fight winning streak overall.

The 28-year-old gained notoriety under the Rizin FF banner, competing for the organization from 2015 to 2019 and becoming the light heavyweight champion. Of Prochazka's 28 career wins, 25 have been knockouts.

Reyes, who nearly beat Jon Jones for the 205-pound title in February 2020, fell short in his third straight fight. The 31-year-old dropped a unanimous decision to Jones and then suffered a knockout loss to Blachowicz in a vacant title bout last September.

Reyes' last victory came against Chris Weidman in October 2019.