Should Glover Teixeira get the next UFC light heavyweight title shot against Jan Blachowicz? That’s the question coming out of his main event win at UFC on ESPN+ 40.
Teixeira (32-7 MMA, 15-5 UFC) beat Thiago Santos (21-8 MMA, 13-7 UFC) in Saturday’s light heavyweight headliner at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, netting a fourth-round TKO to extend his winning streak to five fights.
At 41, Teixeira is in the best form of his career. He made a passionate plea to be the next man to challenge reigning 205-pound titleholder Jan Blachowicz, but the promotion announced just one week ago that middleweight champ Israel Adesanya is on deck as he pursues a second belt.
It’s possible Teixeira’s performance could serve as a game-changer, though. UFC president Dana White said after the event that Teixeira has forced him to rethink the situation.
“I was sitting listening to him give his interview – he’s not wrong,” White told Laura Sanko on the UFC on ESPN+ 40 post-fight show. “It’s like, ‘I deserve the shot, I’ve been here forever.’ He’s on a streak, he looked great tonight. What’s funny is, every time I count this guy and think that I don’t know if you got it in you, he proves me wrong. He looked incredible tonight.”
Blachowicz weighed in on the situation, and he didn’t rule out the possibility of fighting Teixeira next. According to the Polish titleholder, he’s not able to fight before March due to the impending arrival of his first child early next year.
If for some reason the timelines don’t matchup, Blachowicz wrote on social media that he’d be willing to change course and fight the Brazilian (via Twitter):
Great fight and incredible run by @gloverteixeira. You totally deserve to fight for the title and get taste of the #LegendaryPolishPower.
If Adesanya can’t wait till March, let’s go 👊 #UFCVegas13
— Jan Blachowicz (@JanBlachowicz) November 8, 2020
Great fight and incredible run by @gloverteixeira. You totally deserve to fight for the title and get taste of the #LegendaryPolishPower.
If Adesanya can’t wait till March, let’s go 👊 #UFCVegas13
There’s seemingly no definitive plan set for Blachowicz’s next fight. That’s good news for Teixeira, and White reiterated he’s got some thinking to do.
“That’s something we need to figure out,” White said. “But I heard him and I agree with him and I’m taking him serious. So, yeah. I’m not going to doubt this guy any more.”
