The Light-Heavyweight Triangle
Until recently, the UFC’s Light-Heavyweight division has felt uninteresting and somewhat stuck in the mud. The dominance of former champ Jon ‘Bones’ Jones had left the division feeling deflated and lacking challengers, so after news broke of his desire to vacate the belt in favour of a move to Heavyweight, the eyes of the top five of the division began to gleam. In the wake of his absence, Jan Blachowicz stepped up to rip the belt away from previous title challenger Dominick Reyes in dominant fashion at UFC 253 on Fight Island.
Conveniently placed above Blachowicz in the main event was Israel Adesanya, who delivered another highlight-reel finish, dismantling Paulo Costa over two viciously technical rounds. Adesanya had long been teasing the idea of a fight with Jon Jones, with the two going at each other over social media for several months but ‘Stylebender’ was quick to accuse Jones of running from him due to his move to Heavyweight. In what seems to be a power-play from Adesanya, he now looks to challenge Blachowicz for his Light-Heavyweight title, with the announcement coming from Dana White after UFC Vegas 13. Would a victory for Adesanya in the former stomping ground of his rival draw Jones back down? We will have to wait and see.
But wait! What about the number 1 contender at Light-Heavyweight? What about the winner of Thiago Santos versus Glover Teixeira? Until his remarkable comeback win at UFC Vegas 14, it was easy to forget that the veteran martial artist and former title challenger was riding a 4-fight win streak with three finishes for good measure. So why was there no hype? Perhaps two high profile losses in the twilight of his career, one a devastating KO defeat to Alexander Gustafsson? Maybe. Despite these setbacks, Teixeira has quietly fought his way back to the top of the division and thrust himself back into the title conversation. After nearly being finished twice by Thiago Santos, Teixeira fought back valiantly with his signature grappling and ground and pound, softening Santos up to where he yielded his back and Glover was able to secure the 3rd round rear-naked choke.
So, who deserves the shot at Blachowicz and the belt?
In my opinion, the shot should go to Teixeira. At 41 years of age, he doesn’t appear to have a lot of time left in the sport and his victories speak for themselves. But we all know that’s not how things work in the promotion and that the smart business move is to give the shot to Izzy in the hope that he wins and therefore opens the door up to the Jones fight. This scenario could not be less ideal for Glover. A win for Izzy could prompt a rematch with Robert Whittaker, who himself stated that he would be willing to fight Adesanya at 205, after being snubbed by Dana White after his victory over Jared Cannonier at UFC 254. What a story it would be for Glover though, seven years after his first shot at gold at UFC 172, to come back and ascend to the top of the weight class in which until recently held gatekeeper status.
Ultimately the decision lies with the UFC brass, who I hope would appreciate the work Teixeira has put in to get himself back to the top. The fight between Adesanya and Jones would undoubtedly be made more exciting with the addition of a belt, but I don’t think there would be a vast loss in hype if there were no belt on the line. Blachowicz has cited Adesanya’s impatience at not wanting to wait until March to fight, offering the fight to Glover who I hope gets the shot he deserves. Let Izzy rematch Whittaker in February, then give him the winner of Jan and Glover. It will be fascinating to see how this all plays out and to see whether or not the UFC chooses to prioritise the business opportunity of Adesanya fighting for the belt or acknowledges the work of Glover Teixeira and gives him another chance at gold.
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