Jamahal Hill isn’t here for the pleasantries. Ahead of his scrap with Khalil Rountree on June 21 at UFC Fight Night in Baku, Azerbaijan, Hill has made it clear he sees a gulf in skill between himself and his opponent.
Jamahal Hill vs. Khalil Rountree:
In Hill’s own words: “Skill for skill, Khalil Rountree can’t match me. That’s not disrespect, that’s reality.” Speaking an interview with MMA Junkie.
Let’s get everyone up to speed. This bout headlines UFC’s first event in Baku, and it’s not just another fight night. Both men are coming off losses to Alex Pereira, the division’s boogeyman, and both are looking to bounce back into title contention. Jamahal Hill, a former champ, is on a two-fight skid after losing his belt and then falling to Jiří Procházka. Rountree, meanwhile, saw his five-fight win streak snapped by Pereira last October after a short suspension for tainted supplements. He’s got a point to prove and a chin to protect.
The stakes? Winner gets a golden ticket back into the title conversation. The loser, well, gets to rethink their life choices. Rountree is the bookies’ favorite, but Hill’s technical style and five-round experience make him a live underdog. Both men hit like trucks, but Jamahal Hill insists the difference is in the details – and the details, he says, don’t favor Rountree.
As for the trash talk, Hill’s keeping it clinical. He’s not impressed by Rountree’s recent wins, pointing out that Anthony Smith took their fight on five days’ notice and that Rountree’s split decision over Dustin Jacoby was, in Hill’s view, a gift from the judges. “I haven’t seen anything from him to make me think, oh, this dude’s on your level,” Hill explained. “He has my respect in that, but to think that skill for skill he can match with me, I don’t see it that way.”
