Din Thomas thinks Khalil Rountree’s performance at UFC 307 was a one-time thing.
Rountree (13-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC) will look to rebound from his title-fight loss against Alex Pereira when he meets former light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) in Saturday’s UFC on ABC 8 (ABC, ESPN, ESPN+) main event at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Although Hill is on a two-fight losing skid, Thomas sees him getting the finish. The fight analyst and coach explains that although Rountree performed better than most of Pereira’s opponents when he tested him at UFC 307, he doesn’t think he leveled up.
“I’m leaning towards Jamahal Hill to knock out Khalil Rountree,” Thomas told MMA Junkie. “The reason being, Khalil Rountree looked fantastic against Alex Pereira, but that was his moment, and sometimes fighters just have that moment and then they go back to what they really are. And I’m not saying Khalil Rountree is not a great fighter. He’s a very dangerous fighter, but I think he rose to the occasion with Alex Pereira, and then we’re going to automatically assume that that’s his new standard.
“Me personally, I don’t necessarily assume that’s his new standard. I think he rose to the occasion, but I still think he’s a good and dangerous fighter, but not an elite, world championship-level fighter. I think Jamahal Hill as that ability in him. He’s a little bit longer. He’s got instinctive boxing skills. I think he’s going to be able to touch up Khalil Rountree as long as he can avoid the leg kicks.”
Thomas thinks the winner of Hill and Rountree could be in the title mix but said the loser will take a massive step back.
“I think that the winner of this definitely has an opportunity to move up,” Thomas said. “The loser gets put into night watch status. You’re watching the gate at night, you’re the gatekeeper for night time. But the winner has the ability to move up and say there’s still some potential left in them. So, there is a lot at stake in this because there is no championship aspirations without a win on Saturday night for either guy.”
