UFC 275 Main Event Preview: Glover Teixeira – Jiri Prochazka

Anthony Smith, UFC
Anthony Smith, UFC

Tomorrow night in the main event of UFC 275, the light heavyweight title is on the line. Glover Teixeira (33-7) will look to continue his magical run and defend his title for the first time when he takes on the surging Jiri Prochazka (28-3-1).

A few years ago, things were not looking great for Glover Teixeira in the UFC. He had been viciously knocked out by Rumble Johnson, Alexander Gustafsson, and decisioned by Corey Anderson. The dream of Teixeira being a UFC champion was quickly fading.

However, he didn’t give up. On the heels of his grappling, Teixeira rattled off five straight wins to earn a shot at Jan Blachowicz. Ultimately, he was able to submit Blachowicz and became the light heavyweight champion at UFC 267 last October.

Now, while Teixeira might have the belt, many consider Jiri Prochazka to be the best light heavyweight in the world. Prochazka has won 12 fights in a row leading up to UFC 275. In his two UFC appearances, he’s looked sensational knocking out Volkan Oezdemir and Dominick Reyes.

UFC 275 Prediction

I feel like I’ve been picking against Glover Teixeira for the last few years. The UFC light heavyweight champion is constantly overlooked because of his age and I can honestly say I’ve been one of the people who has counted him out.

Up until this point, he’s proved me wrong. However, I’m not sure he can continue that at UFC 275. For Teixeira, he’s going to need to get this fight to the ground. I think if the fight takes place on the feet for the most part, Jiri Prochazka is going to win the light heavyweight title.

Both Teixeira and Prochazka have been hit clean inside the octagon. For Teixeira, I see a path to victory by rocking Prochazka on the feet and following it up with a takedown. Once there, I could see him beating Prochazka down until he could lock up a choke.

However, that’s not what I see playing out. I think that Prochazka is going to prove at UFC 275 that he’s the best in the world. I think we see some solid exchanges in the first couple of rounds and in the second round, Prochazka lands a big shot. He will follow up and get the stoppage victory to become the light heavyweight champion.

Prediction: Jiri Prochazka by TKO – Round 2