Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill was called out by Steven Asplund ahead of his heavyweight debut inside the Octagon.
Hill — who has lost three straight fights at 205 lbs — is moving up to heavyweight for his next bout, and Asplund wants to be his huckleberry for his debut in the UFC’s heaviest weight class.
Steven Asplund Calls Out Jamahal Hill
Speaking to reporters following his recent decision win over Guilherme Pat at UFC Vegas 120, Asplund named Hill as the man he wants to step into the cage with next.
“I want Jamahal Hill. Jamahal Hill is a fat boy who just came up (to heavyweight). That’s a (expletive) nice scalp to add to my wall. It’s funny because I was just talking (expletive). I wanted to call him out at the (UFC Performance Institute), and not even two minutes later the (expletive) walks in. I’m like, ‘Oh, hey.’ So maybe I do got to shut the (expletive) up. But you know, Jamahal, run it, baby. A little couple of hood cats from the Midwest, show me something, you know? I know he probably don’t respect me, and I could tell by the way he’s looking at me at the PI, he don’t think I’m (expletive). I’m gonna keep proving myself to everybody that don’t believe,” Asplund said (via MMAjunkie.com).
A fan favorite, Asplund is 2-1 in the UFC so far, and all three of his fights have been extremely entertaining to watch. Like Hill, Asplund is a striker who prefers to stand and trade, which would make for a very entertaining fight for the fans.
Jamahal Hill Praises Steven Asplund
Though Asplund called Hill out at the post-fight presser, Hill had nothing but good things to say about Asplund’s performance in his win over Pat at UFC Vegas 120, as he took to social media to praise his fellow heavyweight.
“I love the way Asplund fights straight up dawg!!!!” Hill wrote on his X.
With Hill set to make his UFC debut at heavyweight later this year, we’ll see if the matchmakers end up booking this matchup, because it would certainly be a fun one for the fans to watch.
For Asplund, he just wants Hill to know that it’s nothing personal, and that the reason he wants to fight him is that he respects him as a former UFC champion.
“I’m sitting here talking about somebody that was a champion. I know I sound disrespectful, (but) this does not come from a disrespectful place. This is me trying to show everybody that I am willing to take (expletive) tough fights. And I don’t know what everybody thinks about Jamahal, but I’ll tell you what: I want whatever the UFC wants, and I think Jamahal would be a very fun fight. It’s an entertaining fight. We like his fighting style, I like my fighting style, and he’s an abrasive (expletive) just like me. So come on, let’s have a press conference, let’s talk some (expletive). Come on, push me,” Asplund said.
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