SUMMARY
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Glover Teixeira scored a sensational submission victory over Poland’s Jan Blachowicz to be crowned UFC light heavyweight champion at the age of 42 at UFC 267 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, October 30 (Sunday, October 31, Manila time).
Teixeira used his wrestling to win the first round and both men landed heavy punches in the second before the Brazilian brought Blachowicz down to the mat and trapped him against the fence.
The Brazilian quickly took his opponent’s back before applying a rear naked choke that forced a quick submission from the Pole at 3:02 mark of round two.
“I’m breaking the rules at 42 years old, and I’m gonna keep breaking those rules,” Teixeira said in a post-fight interview.
The only UFC champion older than Teixeira is former fighter Randy Couture, who was still a heavyweight champ at the age of 45.
“Twenty years, baby, 20,” Teixeira said. “I have no words to describe (this). Never give up on your dreams.”
A world class-grappler, Teixeira worked his foe from the beginning. He scored a takedown in the first round, but couldn’t get into position to work a submission.
In the second, however, he wobbled Blachowicz (28-9) with a left hook, wrestled him to the mat, used ground-and-pound strikes, and got a near-immediate surrender after sinking in the choke.
Teixeira won his sixth straight fight and is second only to Couture, who was 43 when he won the heavyweight title in 2007, for oldest fighter to win a UFC belt.
In the co-main event, Russian former champion Petr Yan claimed the interim bantamweight title after a thrilling back-and-forth battle over five rounds with American Cory Sandhagen that resulted in a decision victory.
Yan lost the belt to Aljamain Sterling in March 2021 when he was disqualified for an illegal knee to the head, and he is expected to get a rematch for the undisputed crown when Sterling returns from a neck injury.
“I knew Cory was going to be a tough fight, but I knew I was going to change the course of this fight,” said Yan.
“It’s the second time I became a champ in Abu Dhabi, so it’s like my home right now. I’m here and everyone knows I am the real champion.” – Rappler.com
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