The noted former UFC light heavyweight champ, Jiri Prochazka has garnered a lot of attention due to his unconventional training methods. Pretty surprisingly, a large chunk of the MMA universe accepts him as the embodiment of a modern samurai. But how exactly did a Czech native proclaim himself a modern-day samurai?

Well, it is the Japanese media that propagated this title for Prochazka. His unusual training methods caught the public eye during his time in ‘Rizin Fighting Federation’. After achieving massive success in his ‘Rizin’ fights, the Japanese media coined him as ‘The Czech Samurai’ which eventually built his image as a modern-day samurai. But apart from the image, is he a real samurai? If not, how does his training method resemble the techniques of how samurais trained? Let’s try to find the answers to all of these.

A priceless gift from Jiri Prochazka’s coach instilled his samurai mentality

The samurais were abolished within a few years following the end of Japan’s feudal era in 1868. It’s perhaps almost impossible for Prochazka to be one of their heirs who lives thousands of miles away from Japan. Hence, we can say that he isn’t a real samurai. But, apart from being an ethnic clan, the samurais were also a group of people whose lives were governed by a set of values, like honor, discipline, and loyalty. If we go as per these values, ‘BJP’ is pretty much a samurai.

Most fans may know that the 31-year-old chose Muay Thai and karate as the primary genres of his martial arts training. But he started incorporating the samurai techniques after his coach gave him a book named ‘The Book of Five Rings’ almost a decade back. It was written by Miyamoto Musashi, who is a legendary Japanese swordsman.

The teachings of this book moved Prochazka massively as he also said, “This is my bible. It’s showed me the right way on how to do these martial arts”. He even started committing himself to the ‘Bushido Code’ that samurais use as a guide to their life.

A lot of fans may now realize why the Czech native often trains with a samurai sword called ‘katana’. Well, he also owns the katana showcased in the videos of his training. But how much will his samurai-styled training help him in his upcoming fight?

Will the samurai training be enough for Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295?

‘Denisa’ will be facing renowned former middleweight Champion Alex Pereira at UFC 295 on 11 November. The Brazilian is thought to be one of UFC’s most potent strikers right now. His powerful left hand has shut the lights of his rivals multiple times to date. Hence, Prochazka will have to use his footwork and defense to block them.

Whereas, it’s one of ‘BJP’s’ characteristics to throw strikes from unimaginable angles. He needs to showcase this quality of himself in abundance against Pereira. Sometimes, the shots that hit you the hardest are those that you don’t see coming. But do you think the Czech native will be able to get the better of his Brazilian rival on the night of 11 November? Let us know in the comments.

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