Chael Sonnen believes that recently dethroned UFC light heavyweight Glover Teixeira may have blown his chance to force an immediate rematch against new champion Ji?í Procházka.
This past weekend at UFC 275, Teixeira’s once-unlikely reign came to an end at the hands of “Denisa” in Singapore. But the Brazilian’s removal from the top step of the 205-pound ladder didn’t come without a fight.
The pair went back and forth across a five-round headliner that will certainly be picking up a host of Fight of the Year awards come the end of 2022 and will likely even find a place in the overall discussion of all-time MMA bouts.
After falling to defeat via submission just 28 seconds before he was certain to hear ‘and still’ courtesy of the judges’ scorecards, Teixeira took to Twitter to call for an immediate rematch.
But the manner in which the now-former champion did so, Sonnen says, hasn’t helped his chances.
During a recent video uploaded to his YouTube channel, the former two-division UFC title challenger noted the importance of the 48-hour post-fight period when it comes to fighters making their voices and intentions heard.
According to Sonnen, simply asking Procházka and UFC President Dana White for a rematch online was nowhere near impactful enough from Teixeira.
“A little wind has been taken out of the sail of the idea that Glover Teixeira’s gonna be given an immediate rematch,” suggested Sonnen. “The most that Glover has done to get himself the immediate rematch is he tweeted out the word ‘rematch’ with a question mark… That is the most that he’s done. I must tell you, it’s (rematch claim) not gonna get stronger as days go by. That is not how rematches work. Everything is hot right now. You have exactly 48 hours after a fight, exactly.
“Sunday’s a travel day, there’s no media covering things. Then on Monday… Monday became a big media day for MMA, and they’re not going forward, they’re still going back. When Tuesday rolls around, the news cycle for what’s next is in full effect. So, you only have two days to get this done,” added Sonnen. “You’ve got to build that fire… It’s not the case here. It’s just not. Glover asking for a rematch… That’s not Glover’s strong point.”
Sonnen Questions Teixeira’s Question
Sonnen, who knows a thing or two about rematches having faced Paul Filho twice in WEC and the legendary Anderson Silva twice inside the Octagon, proceeded to give the Brazilian veteran a lesson in the art of persuasion.
According to the 45-year-old, Teixeira should have publicly implied that Procházka ‘owes’ him a rematch after being given the opportunity to win the belt by him in the first place. Sonnen suggested that he’s never seen the use of emotional “leverage” fail.
“I think that Glover should have tried everything in the book, including emotionally leveraging Procházka, ‘I gave you an opportunity. You’re a dude with a weird haircut and a name people can’t pronounce. We were the most unanticipated main event of 2022, but I still gave you the opportunity. You must return that to me,’” Sonnen demonstrated. “I’ve never seen anyone make that argument and have it denied.”
Whether it would have been successful or not, Sonnen has no doubt that it would have proven to be more effective than Teixeira’s tweet, which he branded as “weak” and the reason why an immediate rematch is now unlikely.
“That is every bit as effective as sending out a tweet that says, ‘Rematch?’ The question mark is what screwed that up,” claimed Sonnen. “Any kind of a power position, any kind of toughness, you take away when you put a question mark. Who asks questions? … To me, it’s just a very weak position.
“Question mark? You were the light heavyweight champion of the world 48 hours ago. God’s got seven billion men on this Earth, you were strongest of all of them 48 hours ago. Now you’re asking questions on social media?” Sonnen added. “The rematch is not going to happen, not immediately. You have 48 hours to make those things happen. This is going to be a distant memory.”
One man who’s certainly been more stern in demanding a shot is Teixeira’s fellow former titleholder Jan Blachowicz. While the nature of the Pole’s latest victory would perhaps convince some that he’s yet to earn a chance at title redemption, it hasn’t stopped Blachowicz from staking his claim.
As well as traveling to Singapore for UFC 275, Blachowicz had a heated interaction with the new champ post-fight and pitched an all-European championship collision in post-event interviews and on social media.
The other threat to Teixeira’s rematch hopes is the upcoming fight between top-five contenders Anthony Smith and Magomed Ankalaev. The UFC President hinted last week that the victor will likely challenge for the title next, a belief that was also recently shared by Smith.
Do you agree with Chael Sonnen? Has Glover Teixeira “screwed” his chances of an immediate rematch?
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