Age Ain't Nothing But Number
Glover Teixeira Wins, Kayla Harrison's Decision
What’s Poppin Fight Fans!! Sorry, it’s been two weeks since I dropped one of these bad boys but I am back! So much has happened these past couple of weeks! Here are some of my thoughts!
This past week we had an underdog dethrone a reigning and defending champion as Glover Teixeira at age 42, won the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship! He went into the contest as a +175 underdog against Jan Blowchitz. Jan had come off a victory against current Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya. There’s a lot of feel-good stories within the realm of MMA but this one hits a soft spot. I had the pleasure of speaking to Glover this year as he awaited his title shot. He was humble and felt he deserved it and didn’t need to wait after his dominant performance over Anthony Smith. Glover said in our interview he just wanted to be someone who went out there and always tried or finished fights and put all his energy into every contest. Glover granted me this interview earlier in my MMA Journalism journey and that’s something he didn’t need to do but he agreed to it and told me had as much time as I needed.
Glover has been on such a journey in combat sports. From being one of Chuck Liddel’’s main training partners. To not being able to fight here in America because of Visa issues. Failing in his first attempt at a UFC Championship against Jon Jones and people doubting he will ever get back to a title shot because of his age. Glover use all of that as motivation and put together a nice winning streak and put himself back into a Championship fight and completely dominated from start to finish. I hope to see Glover defy the odds of age and defend the title a couple of times before he hangs up the gloves. If you’ve never seen a Glover Teixeira fight or post-fight speech now is your chance. I also want to give a special shout-out to John Hackleman who coached Chuck Liddell when he was Champion and now he has a Champion in Glover. All hail King Teixeira!
There is no way I can send out a post and not speak about the star of the weekend, Khazmat Chimaev. WHAT A DOMINANT PERFORMANCE. Li Jingliang is not a walk in the park for anyone and he wasn’t able to land one strike on the surging welterweight. Chimaev lifted Jingliang and brought him to Dana White and told Dana White to give him anyone and he will smash them before dominating Jingliang to a first-round submission finish. Usually, I feel organizations shouldn't rush contenders but I feel Khazmat has put together the most impressive first 4 fights in the history of the MMA. I feel it wouldn’t be a bad idea for him to fight someone in the upper echelon of the welterweight division. Maybe perhaps the likes of Neel Magny, Gilbert Burns, or Vincente Luque. No matter who is next, I feel like we have a future king in our hands and I’m excited to see what's next!
This last Wednesday I had the pleasure of attending the PFL Championship and what a show it was! From Antonio Carlos Junior securing his million-dollar prize in the first round and making it look easy, to Raush Manifio not being able to pay rent to become a millionaire in a classic, and of course, Ray Cooper III getting redemption with a comeback of the year performance solidifying being the best welterweight out the UFC. But the star of the show of course was Golden Kayla Harrison. Kayla gained another million-dollar prize and belt defeating Taylor Gordado in the 2nd round. The most important question coming out of this fight was where Kayla would land as she is a free agent.
I had the honor of speaking to Kayla a few months ago and she seemed keen on the idea of venturing outside the PFL and wanting to solidify herself as the best fighter in the world. Kayla officially became a mother of two recently and I feel this maybe have changed her mind possibly about her next endeavor. Kayla said when I asked her post-fight, “ I have two children now and their future is very important to me"'. I feel she could stay another year and why not collect another check. Her going to the UFC wouldn’t be the smartest decision financially, but I feel it would help her legacy. Imagine Kayla going to the UFC and taking out the greatest female fighter of all time in Amanda Nunes. It’s something the world would watch but is the most important thing to her? Maybe not but only time will tell. Kayla is taking on such great responsibility in taking two kids in, it’s life-changing. I hope Kayla makes the best decision for herself and not for other people, but no matter what she garnered a lot of respect from her peers and MMA legends. Congratulations on another win and the biggest joy of all in becoming a mother.
This weekend we have a huge event in UFC 268 and I will be making a separate post breaking down that card and also giving my predictions. Starting with that post my Substack will be $1 per month. I thank you all so much for reading and believing in me and for the support. More amazing things to come!!
Of course, I can’t leave without a music recommendation! This one’s from 2015 but every single track is so special to me. Check out This is for the Time by Blah Blah Blah.
Glover carries himself how every martial artist should. Great article !