‘I Would Fight a Champion’- Glover Teixeira Reveals Why He Turned Down a Fight for UFC 259 Featuring Israel Adesanya vs Jan Blachowicz
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‘I Would Fight a Champion’- Glover Teixeira Reveals Why He Turned Down a Fight for UFC 259 Featuring Israel Adesanya vs Jan Blachowicz
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 06: Glover Teixeira of Brazil poses on the scale during the UFC weigh-in at UFC APEX on November 06, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 06: Glover Teixeira of Brazil poses on the scale during the UFC weigh-in at UFC APEX on November 06, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
UFC 205-pound contender, Glover Teixeira, spoke to AG Fight about his role as a back-up for UFC 259’s main event. Chiefly, the 41-year-old former title challenger, is on a five-fight tear through the division and has been utterly dominant. With several notable wins under his belt, Teixeira is now the back-up replacement fighter for Israel Adesanya vs Jan Blachowicz.
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‘The Last Stylebender’ moved up to contest for UFC gold at 205-pounds against the Polish champion. Adesanya’s bump-up to challenge Blachowicz has left Glover Teixeira out in the cold without his well-earned title shot. However, a champion of Adesanya’s caliber moving up is a much more lucrative booking from the UFC’s standpoint.
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 07: Israel Adesanya of Nigeria battles Yoel Romero (not pictured) in their UFC middleweight championship fight during the UFC 248 event at T-Mobile Arena on March 07, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
The UFC brass will be keen to have an established face like Israel Adesanya fight a newly minted champion like Blachowicz. Additionally, the ‘Champion vs Champion’ angle certainly helps bring more eyeballs to the pay-per-view event.
Glover Teixeira sheds light on his decision to be the back-up for UFC 259
The Brazilian icon revealed his exact thought process behind choosing to be a back-up for UFC 259 over opting to fight a new opponent. Teixeira feels that he’s earned his place as the next in line for gold and would rather wait it out. He seems content to sit on the merits of his win streak and remains primed to make a shot next.
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 07: (R-L) Glover Teixeira of Brazil takes down Thiago Santos of Brazil in a light heavyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on November 07, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
“When the UFC called me, I was asked if I wanted to fight on the same day. I said I wanted to stay in reserve and said I didn’t want to fight anyone at the event other than the belt. Anyway, I would fight a champion, since Adesanya is a middleweight champion (84 kg) too and it would be a profit. But I am sure that my next fight will be for the belt, even if I don’t enter it now,” Teixeira said. (translated via Google Translate)
Glover Teixeira has certainly earned his title shot, and his body of work has aged exceptionally well in hindsight. His last performance against Thiago Santos proved that he has what it takes to make a crack at the title. However, it all boils down to the timeline of events for his eventual title opportunity.
Has Teixeira made the right move to stay as a backup rather than take another fight?
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