UFC light heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira wants to walk away from the sport in a similar fashion to that of Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Teixeira is set to face Jiri Procházka for his first title defense at UFC 275. He earned the title by pulling off an incredible win over Jan Blachowicz at UFC 267, submitting him in the second round.
Teixeira, at 42 years old, is way past what is considered by most to be the physical prime for fighters. However, he’s managed to earn some of his best wins in his 40s.
Teixeira recently alluded to a ‘perfect plan’ for the end of his MMA career, which includes a win over Procházka and one last fight in New York in November. But he doesn’t seem as committed to that plan as previously thought.
During a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Teixeira walked back his earlier comments and emphasized his confidence ahead of his last potential UFC fights.
“Listen, I didn’t say that for sure,” Teixeira said. “If there’s a perfect [plan], it would be that if I win this fight – of course I am confident, but the thing is when you guys ask me a question way before I get into camp, it’s almost like, maybe I’ll fight one more time. But when I’m camp right now, I’m a lion.
“You’ve got to come see my training. Then you’ll see, and you’re probably not even going to ask that question about retirement. Because the way I’ve been training, the way I’ve been feeling, the way camp is going lately, I’m so happy about everything.
“Eventually, I do want to retire. I said the perfect scenario is me beating this guy in Singapore and hopefully fight Jan [Blachowicz] at Madison Square Garden in November and then call it a day. But I don’t want to make a decision like that. I think that’s a possibility, but I don’t want to [say], ‘Oh I’m going to retire this year, or a couple more fights,’ or this and that.”
Teixeira Wants To Take The Khabib Route Into Retirement
After many UFC fans made their countdowns for when Teixeira may retire, he seems to be going back on his original claims. He still feels he can compete against the top 205lbers in the sport and earn a few more legacy-defining wins before hanging up the gloves.
Teixeira went on to clarify that he still loves training and the process that comes with getting ready for a UFC fight week. He also compared Nurmagomedov’s UFC leave in 2020 to how he wants to ideally leave the fight game.
“I love the fight, I love the game,” Teixeira said. “I love the camp life to be preparing for a fight, but I’m also 42 going on 43. It’s time to start thinking about it. I want to retire from the sport, I don’t want the sport to retire me.
“You see Khabib [Nurmagomedov], I take my hat off to Khabib when he retired on top. There’s no motivation by money. He’s making $10, $20 million, they offer him so much money, but he’s not going back. He’s done. He doesn’t want to do it anymore. That’s going to be me. The day that I don’t want to do it anymore [I will retire]. The day that I don’t want to get myself going is the time that I’m going to be done.”
Teixeira has won six fights in a row since a unanimous decision loss to Corey Anderson in July 2018. He has picked up finishes over the likes of Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos, and Blachowicz during his current winning streak.
Age continues to be just a number for Teixeira, and he intends to further prove that sentiment next month in the UFC 275 headliner.
Do you think Glover Teixeira will retire by the end of 2022?
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