Glover Teixeira eyes April return, still seeks Rashad Evans fight

Glover Teixeira and Rashad Evans were slated to headline the UFC Fight Night 61 card in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on Feb. 22, but the bout was canceled after the Brazilian was forced to pull out with a knee injury.

Teixeira, who suffered back-to-back decision losses to Phil Davis and UFC champion Jon Jones in his last fights in 2014, is still able to stay in shape, but can’t train everything.

“I’m training, but my knee isn’t 100 percent,” Teixeira told MMAFighting.com. “I feel a lot of pain when I try to train jiu-jitsu and wrestling. I can do boxing or kickboxing, but I can’t grapple or wrestle. My knee is still weak, so the doctor said I might get another serious injury if I kept training for the fight.”

According to Teixeira, his doctor said his knee “will be 100 percent to train everything in four or six weeks”, and he’s targeting a return to the Octagon in April against Evans, who defeated Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen in his past couple fights inside the Octagon.

“April would be perfect,” he said. “I like this fight. I think it would be a great fight for us and for the fans. Rashad is a wrestler, but not a wrestler like those who just hugs you and do nothing. He comes to fight. He doesn’t to a boring fight, so I would like to fight him when I return.”

Glover Teixeira and Rashad Evans were slated to headline the UFC Fight Night 61 card in Porto Alegre, Brazil, on Feb. 22, but the bout was canceled after the Brazilian was forced to pull out with a knee injury.

Teixeira, who suffered back-to-back decision losses to Phil Davis and UFC champion Jon Jones in his last fights in 2014, is still able to stay in shape, but can’t train everything.

“I’m training, but my knee isn’t 100 percent,” Teixeira told MMAFighting.com. “I feel a lot of pain when I try to train jiu-jitsu and wrestling. I can do boxing or kickboxing, but I can’t grapple or wrestle. My knee is still weak, so the doctor said I might get another serious injury if I kept training for the fight.”

According to Teixeira, his doctor said his knee “will be 100 percent to train everything in four or six weeks”, and he’s targeting a return to the Octagon in April against Evans, who defeated Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen in his past couple fights inside the Octagon.

“April would be perfect,” he said. “I like this fight. I think it would be a great fight for us and for the fans. Rashad is a wrestler, but not a wrestler like those who just hugs you and do nothing. He comes to fight. He doesn’t to a boring fight, so I would like to fight him when I return.”