It will be a long time before UFC fans see Jamahal Hill back in the octagon.
The former UFC light heavyweight champion has undergone surgery on his knee to repair an injury that’s been present for a while now. Since returning from his Achilles tendon tear, Hill has lost three fights in a row to current champ Alex Pereira, former champ Jiri Prochazka, and most recently Khalil Rountree in June.
Hill (12-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) admits he hasn’t been in full form for his past three UFC appearances.
“Apparently the cartilage in my knee was pretty much non-existent,” Hill told Home of Fight. “I had some pretty bad tears in there, even in the cartilage, so I tried cartilage transplant. I filled that up and everything, trying to get me back and get me that bounce back in my legs. If you noticed in the last couple fights, I haven’t really been hopping or bouncing, or really just springing up, throwing kicks up really or anything like that.
“Hopefully with this getting done, something I’ve been trying to avoid because I wanted to get my belt back. I lost it while I was at the top from injury, and I just wanted to get back and get it back as soon as possible. I tried to be conservative with some things that need to be more aggressively approached.”
A dejected Hill revealed that he’s set to undergo another procedure and likely won’t be able to return until late 2026.
