Glover Teixeira looks down on Ryan Bader of the TKO win at UFC Fight Night 28. Photo via UFC/Getty Images.
Glover Teixeira inched even closer to contender status with his first-round technical knockout of Ryan Bader at UFC Fight Night 28 on Wednesday night in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Teixeira recovered from some early knockdowns to come back and finish Bader via strikes at 2:55 of the opening round. Following the win, the victorious Brazilian laid out his intentions of owning the UFC 205-pound title, no matter who he has to beat in order to earn it.
“I’m telling you, this belt is going to be mine,” Teixeira exclaimed after the win. “It doesn’t matter if it’s Jon Jones [or] if it’s [Alexander] Gustafsson, it’s mine.”
Bader came out came out aggressive, throwing combinations that shook his Brazilian opponent. After grappling against the cage, the separated and Bader came forward again landing heavy punches as Teixeira covered up.
The flow of the fight made a sudden change when Teixeira countered with a right hand, followed up by a left hook that nearly knocked Bader out cold. Teixeira followed to the ground with hammer fists, and referee Herb Dean stepped in to stop the fight.
“I knew exactly what was happening and I was able to use that as an opportunity for me,” Teixeira said.
Teixeira is currently ranked No. 2 in the official UFC rankings, and will likely keep a close watch on the UFC 165 main event between champ Jon Jones and challenger Alexander Gustafsson.
With the win, UFC President Dana White announced via Twitter that Teixeira earned the Knockout of the Night bonus and an extra $50,000.
“Jacare” Souza steamrolls Okami
Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza made a huge statement in the middleweight division, finishing former No. 1 contender Yushin Okami in the first round of their UFC Fight Night co-main event.
Jacare displayed power in his right hand, knocking Okami for a loop, en route to the technical knockout at 2:47 of the opening round.
“I’ve got a very tough right hand,” Jacare said following the win.
The co-main event started out with Jacare throwing a combination of punches that staggered Okami. The Brazilian threw several more short punches that Okami covered up for before the two separated.
The punching power of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt showed up again when Jacare landed a massive right hand that put Okami down. Souza pursued him to the ground and finished the fight with strikes from top position.
With the win, Souza improves to 2-0 since coming to the UFC from Strikeforce, improving his overall mark to 19-3. Okami drops to 29-8 overall.
Benavidez makes quick work of Formiga
Joseph Benavidez stopped Jussier “Formiga” da Silva in the first round of their main card fight at UFC Fight Night in Belo Horizonte on Wednesday night.
Benavidez finished the Brazilian by technical knockout with strikes on the ground at 3:07 of the opening frame.
“I was excited to fight here in Brazil,” he said. “The fight went how it went and I feel great about it.”
As expected the flyweights came out on a quick pace, trading strikes while standing on the feet. The two exchange punches and kicks until Benavidez landed a one-two combination, followed by a knee that sent Formiga turtling up on the ground.
After a number of strikes by Benavidez on his grounded opponent, the referee stepped in to put a stop to the fight.
The win improves Benavidez’s overall record to 19-3.
Earlier results:
Piotr Hallman def. Francisco Trinaldo by submission (kimura) at 3:50, Round 2
Rafael Natal def. Tor Troeng by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Ali Bagautinov def. Marcos Vinicius by TKO (strikes) at 3:28, Round 3
Prelims:
Kevin Souza def. Felipe Arantes by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Lucas Martins def. Ramiro Hernandez by submission (rear-nakede choke) at 1:10, Round 1
Elias Silverio def. Joao Zeferino by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Ivan Jorge def. Keith Wisniewski by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Prelim on GRACIEMAG.com:
Sean Spencer def. Yuri Villefort by split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)