Tag: Jan Blachowicz

Jan Blachowicz Pitches Procházka vs. Raki? Title Eliminator

UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jan Blachowicz has suggested the next number one contender should be determined by a fight between Ji?í Procházka and Aleksandar Raki?. Blachowicz has held the 205-pound gold for over a year. He won the belt at UFC 253 last September by defeating Dominick Reyes with a second-round TKO. After Jon Jones […]

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UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jan Blachowicz has suggested the next number one contender should be determined by a fight between Ji?í Procházka and Aleksandar Raki?.

Blachowicz has held the 205-pound gold for over a year. He won the belt at UFC 253 last September by defeating Dominick Reyes with a second-round TKO. After Jon Jones vacated the strap earlier in 2020, the Polish powerhouse’s crowning marked the first post-Jones champion.

After upsetting the odds against “The Devastator,” Blachowicz found himself branded as the underdog for his first title defense. At UFC 259 in March this year, UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya looked to become the latest simultaneous two-division champ by dethroning Blachowicz. However, after five rounds, the 38-year-old was awarded a comfortable unanimous decision win over “The Last Stylebender”.

After batting away the challenge from below, Blachowicz will now face a title challenge from within his division’s roster for the first time. In the main event of UFC 267 this weekend, the champion will defend his title against #1-ranked light heavyweight contender Glover Teixeira. The Brazilian veteran will be looking to join Randy Couture in the post-40 champions club with a victory this weekend. Come fight night in Abu Dhabi, Teixeira will be 42 years old.

Blachowicz Plays Matchmaker

Blachowicz is visibly confident about his chances of emerging from the Etihad Arena on Saturday with the 205-pound gold still wrapped around his waist. While showing respect to his opponent, and acknowledging the threat he possesses, the champ suggested he’ll be knocking Teixeira into retirement on October 30.

With that in mind, the Polish star recently looked ahead to what could be next for him following this week’s non-pay-per-view numbered event. During a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Blachowicz jumped into the shoes of Sean Shelby. He said that if he was a matchmaker, he’d be pairing #2-ranked Ji?í Procházka and #3-ranked Aleksandar Raki? together for a title eliminator.

“If I was the matchmaker, but I’m not, but I would do Ji?í against Raki?, and the winner of this fight next for me or next contender for the title shot… but they send me contract and I sign it and fight, because I don’t like to choose opponents. Never do this before and I don’t want to do this.”

In just two Octagon outings, Procházka has burst onto the UFC scene and announced himself as a light heavyweight title contender. The Czech star headed into his promotional debut last summer on a 10-fight win streak and with 25 knockouts in 28 professional wins. He showed exactly why he was so highly touted when he brutally KO’d Volkan Oezdemir on Fight Island. His second fight ended in a similar fashion. In the UFC Vegas 25 main event, “Denisa” slept Reyes with a vicious spinning back elbow.

Raki?, meanwhile, has been in the UFC since 2017. Aside from a controversial split decision loss to Oezdemir, the Austrian has won all of his fights in the UFC. Had he defeated the Swiss contender, the 29-year-old would be unbeaten since his MMA debut loss in 2011. Consecutive victories over Anthony Smith and Thiago Santos have brought him into title contention.

Who would you like to see Jan Blachowicz face if he defeats Glover Teixeira at UFC 267?

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Glover Teixeira Would Not Immediately Retire After UFC 267 Title Win

Glover Teixeira is heading into the end of his fighting career and he knows it. With over ten years in the UFC and 20 fights, Glover Teixeira is nearing the end of his career. The ultimate feather in his cap would be winning the light heavyweight title against Jan Blackowicz at UFC 267. That is […]

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Glover Teixeira is heading into the end of his fighting career and he knows it.

With over ten years in the UFC and 20 fights, Glover Teixeira is nearing the end of his career. The ultimate feather in his cap would be winning the light heavyweight title against Jan Blackowicz at UFC 267. That is the plan for Teixeira, but if he wins the title in Abu Dhabi, he won’t immediately hang up his gloves. He wants to defend the title a bit before retirement.

“It’s not easy at this age. So I say another year, maybe,” Teixeira told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “I’ll say this title fight and maybe defending the title one or two times next year, and call it a day, you know what I mean?”

Teixeira’s last title fight was back in 2014 when he lost to Jon Jones. He has worked hard and fought some of the best to ensure he would get one more shot at the belt. When he finally gets his hands on the belt he isn’t going to let it go so easily.

“I feel like if you win the title, you have to defend it,” Teixeira said. “You have to defend it; you have to go out there and defend the belt. Everything’s possible, man. Like Cormier was doing amazing at an early age, why (did) he stop? Because he knows how hard it is to fight at that level at that age.”

Today, just two days before his big UFC 267 fight, Teixeira turned 42. Teixeira mention Cormier, who retired at 41. He was also at the top of his game when he walked away, but for Teixeira, it seems he has more in the tank. Over the last three years, he has strung together five amazing wins, four of which were finishes. Now at 42, he is still submitting guys much younger than him.

Do you think Glover Teixeira can beat Jan Blachowicz at UFC 267 in Abu Dhabi?

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Jan Blachowicz vs. Glover Teixeira: A Head-to-Toe Breakdown

If you had suggested in 2015 or 2016 that Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira would be fighting for the UFC light heavyweight title in 2021, you would have been laughed out of town…

If you had suggested in 2015 or 2016 that Jan Blachowicz and Glover Teixeira would be fighting for the UFC light heavyweight title in 2021, you would have been laughed out of town…

Blachowicz Taking Gustafsson Approach Against “Experienced” Teixeira

UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jan Blachowicz is well aware of the threat veteran Brazilian Glover Teixeira will pose in the UFC 267 main event. The pair will collide this Saturday in what will be Blachowicz’s first title defense against a member of the 205-pound roster. After his championship crowning at UFC 253 last September, which […]

Continue Reading Blachowicz Taking Gustafsson Approach Against “Experienced” Teixeira at MMA News.

UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jan Blachowicz is well aware of the threat veteran Brazilian Glover Teixeira will pose in the UFC 267 main event.

The pair will collide this Saturday in what will be Blachowicz’s first title defense against a member of the 205-pound roster. After his championship crowning at UFC 253 last September, which saw him finish Dominick Reyes in the second round, the Polish powerhouse’s first challenge came from below.

At UFC 259 in March this year, Blachowicz looked to stop the two-division champ quest of middleweight kingpin Israel Adesanya. “The Last Stylebender” had conquered Anderson Silva, Kelvin Gastelum, Robert Whittaker, Yoel Romero, and Paulo Costa on his way to an unblemished 20-0 record at 185 pounds. Despite his underdog status continuing into the headlining bout, the Pole comfortably defeated Adesanya on the scorecards.

Now, Blachowicz will face the in-form #1-ranked light heavyweight as he looks to build his dominant reign over the 205-pound division.

However, Teixeira will be no easy task. Since going 2-3 in the promotion between 2016 and 2018, the Brazilian has built an impressive five-fight win streak that includes victories over Ion Cu?elaba, Nikita Krylov, Anthony Smith, and Thiago Santos.

During a recent interview with SCMP MMA, Blachowicz spoke about his upcoming opponent. The champion acknowledged the 41-year-old’s experience and ability to catch opponents with his high-level jiu-jitsu.

“I think that his experience. Because he’s got a lot of experience. He know how to use his skills. Of course, jiu-jitsu: high level. This is his best weapon. But he know how to make you tired and knock you out. He know how to survive bad moment. You think you got him, but he’s old fox, so he’s got a lot of experience. And then he catch you, he grab you, and submit you. So you need to be careful for that.”

Discussing his game plan for Saturday’s main event, the Cieszyn-born star suggested it will be in his best interests to keep the fight standing. According to Blachowicz, being patient and looking for a second or third-round knockout will be his path to victory.

“If fight goes to the ground, I’m gonna be ready for everything what he got for me, but I think so that even if he take me down, I will stand up and the fight will be on the feet, for me the best to keep fighting on the feet and knock him out by hands in second or third round. That would be the best way for me to win the fight, not the first because if you try to do this the first, then he can catch you. You need to wait, make him tired.”

Blachowicz reiterated the danger his challenger poses when opponents jump in too fast, citing Santos’ submission loss to Teixeira last November as an example. The 28-year-old is targeting a performance and finish similar to Alexander Gustafsson’s Stockholm display against Teixeira in 2017.

“You need to control this. When you hit him and he goes down, you need to calm down. ‘OK, it’s not the moment.’ OK if you hit him so hard (that) he’s almost finished, you need to go and finish. But you need to know when to do this. Not the first because he can use this and win the fight like he do this with Thiago [Santos]. So I will not do this mistake. I’m going to finish him little bit later, like Gustafsson. He wait to knock him out (until) the third round. He wait, he wait, he wait for his good moment, and then he finish him. So I’m going to do the same like Gustafsson. Same way.”

Who do you think will leave UFC 267 as the light heavyweight king, Jan Blachowicz or Glover Teixeira?

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UFC 267: Previewing Blachowicz-Teixiera and the Rest of the Card

When is a pay-per-view card not a pay-per-view card? When it’s UFC 267. The mixed martial arts conglomerate will add to its numerical list in unorthodox fashion on Saturday from …

When is a pay-per-view card not a pay-per-view card? When it’s UFC 267. The mixed martial arts conglomerate will add to its numerical list in unorthodox fashion on Saturday from …