Glover Teixeira did what Jon Jones could not five years ago today.
Jones is widely considered a leading contender in the UFC GOAT debate following a career that has seen him win gold at both heavyweight and light heavyweight, and win every fight aside from a controversial disqualification and one no contest.
The Rochester native’s dominance has been largely unmatched, with only one fighter ever beating him on a judge’s scorecard. That came in 2019, when Jones defeated Thiago Santos via split decision.
‘Marreta’ fought through a serious knee injury to push Jones to the limit in their Las Vegas title fight. But while that left many intrigued for his return 16 months later, things did not go to plan for the hard-hitting Brazilian.
- LATEST NEWS: Jon Jones apologizes to Dana White as he finally admits ‘I was wrong’ in the Tom Aspinall saga
Thiago Santos was submitted by Glover Teixeira in his first fight after losing to Jon Jones
Santos fought Jones with a torn ACL. The fact that he was even able to continue, let alone take a scorecard from the GOAT contender, was a miraculous feat.
But the injury did lead to a significant layoff, and the Brazilian was never quite the same when he returned.
He was back in action on this day, November 7, in 2020. Santos headlined UFC Vegas 13 against Glover Teixeira, who was in the midst of a run that would go on to see him become the oldest first-time champion in the promotion’s history.
One fight before Teixeira submitted Jan Blachowicz to become UFC champion in Abu Dhabi, the veteran used the same rear-naked choke to put Santos away at the Apex.
Teixeira had to overcome adversity after almost being finished by his fellow countryman’s big strikes early on. But he soon turned the tide in his favor and dished out some relentless ground-and-pound before locking in the fight-ending choke in round three.
- LATEST NEWS: Valentina Shevchenko’s double champion ambitions reignited by one ‘rumor’ ahead of UFC 322
Glover Teixeira could have the chance to coach Alex Pereira against Jon Jones
Years after dispatching the man who took Jones the distance, Teixeira could soon have the chance to coach his star fighter to a victory over the legend.
As talk of the promotion’s planned event at the White House continues to grow, Alex Pereira called out Jones for a superfight at the celebratory occasion.
That pitch came after the Brazilian knocked out Magomed Ankalaev to become a two-time light heavyweight champion, and it did not take long for Jones to respond positively.
“Alex (Pereira), I’d be down to bring the highest skill level to the White House,” Jones posted on X. “I appreciate the respect you showed, let’s dance.”