Jiri Prochazka still believes he can put up a better performance against Alex Pereira.

With Pereira relinquishing his light heavyweight title, Prochazka (32-5-1 MMA, 6-2 UFC) will take on Carlos Ulberg (12-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) for the vacant belt in the UFC 327 headliner on April 11 at Kaseya Center in Miami (Paramount+).

Prochazka's lone two octagon losses have come in knockouts to Pereira in title fights, but he has managed to rebound and re-enter the title picture each time. However, in order to avenge those losses, he'll have to move weight classes as Prochazka thinks Pereira's days at 205 pounds are over.

"No, I think I have to go to heavyweight," Prochazka told MMA Junkie. "I really don't care which weight I'm fighting, but I believe every time light heavyweight shows my best shape. When I fought in Rizin in Japan, I fought with the heavyweight guys many times. I can push my body to show bigger strength and be able to fight with these types of guys, with these heavyweights and still be faster, still have more endurance, precise, all these things. So it's a really good idea for me."

While Pereira is still on his mind, make no mistake about it, claiming UFC gold is Prochazka's main priority.

"For me, every fight is the title fight," Prochazka said. "This is the first thing what I have to say, and I don't look for some revenge against Pereira or whatever, I'm just looking to show my best performance, and that's it. If I will meet Alex in the future for a third fight, I hope and I believe that I will show my best and that I will win. But until that moment, I'm looking at what's before me."

This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: How Jiri Prochazka could follow Alex Pereira's career footsteps