Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Glover Teixeira is coming off a massive submission win over No. 1 ranked light heavyweight contender Thiago Santos, but the Brazilian veteran is still unsure if it will lead to a title shot.
Teixeira, who defeated Santos last weekend at UFC Vegas 13 (highlights HERE), has now won his last five trips to the Octagon. That sort of success is typically rewarded with a title shot, especially for a proven contender like Teixeira, but the path to a championship fight is not as clear as one might think.
That’s because current UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya is already planning a move to 205 pounds to take a shot at light heavyweight titleholder Jan Blachowicz. The two were expected to clash early next year, but Teixeira’s submission win over Santos has potentially impacted those plans.
Teixeira has been pleading for another shot at UFC gold and UFC president Dana White seems to be on board. It is unknown at this time if Teixeira will be able to skip Adesanya in line and get that shot sooner rather than later.
“Dana’s a business guy. He’s gonna do (what’s good for the business),” Teixeira told ESPN’s Ariel Helwani in a recent interview. “But also, I’m telling you this: he’s a fair man. I see some people complain about Dana; I’ve got no complaints about Dana.”
“You look at the staff, the whole staff, from the security to the nutritionists, everybody. Everybody’s happy. They want to be there. They look like they want to be in the UFC,” Teixeira said.
“It’s so great to fight in the UFC because the whole staff, they treat you so well. The people are happy to work there. And that says a lot about Dana. He’s a big boss and people are happy to work for him.”
Teixeira, 41, has been fighting under UFC control since 2012. He’s had a tremendous relationship with the promotion and has been a true company man over the course of his 20 appearances.
That said, Teixeira understands the politics that go into fighting and is aware that UFC could end up booking Blachowicz vs. Adesanya anyways. It’s one of the biggest matchups to make in 2021 as “Last Stylebender” attempts to win his second UFC title while remaining undefeated.
“When it comes to business, Adesanya’s gonna make for sense for the UFC. But he knows I deserve that belt. I deserve the title shot.”
What do you think? Does Teixeira or Adesanya deserve the next light heavyweight title shot?
Let’s hear it!