Jiri Prochazka has a “very simple” outlook on his fight with Glover Teixeira at UFC 275.
“I am standup guy, and he’s ground game guy,” Prochazka said. “That’s all.”
While there is an element of truth there, it’ll surely be a bit more complicated than that when Teixeira defends his UFC light heavyweight title against Prochazka in the main event in Singapore.
Teixeira is known for his durability and has power in his hands, in addition to his wrestling and grappling prowess. He’s also writing one of MMA’s best Cinderella stories, winning the belt in his 40s long after he was written off in the division.
Prochazka, meanwhile, is one of the most diverse and creative strikers at this level of MMA in a long time. ESPN ranks Teixeira No. 8 on its list of best pound-for-pound MMA fighters in the world and No. 1 at light heavyweight. Prochazka is No. 4 at light heavyweight.
Teixeira (33-7) became the oldest first-time champion in UFC history when he beat Jan Blachowicz for the title at UFC 267 last October. The Brazil native is the second-oldest UFC champion ever, behind Randy Couture. Teixeira, 42, has won six straight and first challenged for the title, a loss to Jon Jones, in 2014.
Prochazka (28-3-1) has won 12 straight, including his first two in the UFC. The Czech Republic native has finished an incredible 10 in a row via KO/TKO. Prochazka, 29, is coming off a second-round spinning back elbow knockout of Dominick Reyes in May 2021, a Knockout of the Year contender. “Denisa” is the former light heavyweight champion of Japan’s Rizin Fighting Federation promotion.
In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko will defend her UFC women’s flyweight title against Taila Santos. ESPN has Shevchenko (22-3) ranked as the top pound-for-pound women’s MMA fighter in the world. With a win, the 34-year-old would pass Ronda Rousey for the most successful title defenses ever in one division among UFC women’s champions. Santos (19-1), a 28-year-old from Brazil, has won four in a row.
Also on the card, former UFC women’s strawweight champions Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk face off in a rematch of their Fight of the Year contender from 2020, red-hot knockout artist Andre Fialho meets Jake Matthews in a welterweight bout and Aussie welterweight prospect Jack Della Maddalena faces Ramazan Emeev.
Follow along as Brett Okamoto, Marc Raimondi and Jeff Wagenheim recap the action from Singapore or watch the fights on ESPN+ PPV.
Now fighting: Men’s bantamweight: Kyung Ho Kang (17-9 1 NC, 6-3 1 NC UFC, +115) vs. Batgerel Danaa (12-3, 3-2 UFC, -135)
UFC 275 results
Strawweight: Silvana Gomez Juarez (11-4, 1-2 UFC) def. Liang Na (19-6, 0-2 UFC) by TKO (Watch on ESPN+)
Gomez Juarez might have been fighting for her job, as she was winless coming in this weekend. She saved her spot on the UFC roster in about as emphatic a way as possible.
Gomez Juarez blasted Na with massive punches, putting her to sleep for a knockout victory at 1:22 of the first round. It was Gomez Juarez’s first UFC victory. Gomez Juarez landed an overhand right that put Na on her butt. Na got up, and Gomez landed a left hook that put Na down for good. Referee Steve Perceval quickly stepped in.
“So happy,” Gomez Juarez. “I dreamed about it. I visualized it.”
Gomez Juarez, 37, snapped a two-fight UFC losing streak. The Argentina native, who lives and trains in Tijuana, Mexico, is a 12-year pro who has fought in places like Poland, Brazil and Mexico before getting a shot at the UFC. Na, a 25-year-old China native, has dropped two in a row and is still looking for her first UFC win.
Women’s featherweight: Joselyne Edwards (11-4, 2-2 UFC) def. Ramona Pascual (6-4, 0-2 UFC) by unanimous decision (Watch on ESPN+)
Panama’s Edwards picked up her second win inside the Octagon, behind a solid three-round effort over Pascual. Edwards defended all but one of Pascual’s takedown attempts, maintained distance on the feet and went to work with her superior kickboxing en route to judges’ scores of 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28. According to UFC Stats, Edwards out-landed Pascual in total strikes, 150 to 64.
Pascual did have a moment in the opening round when she hurt Edwards with a left kick to the body, followed by a left head kick. Edwards survived, however, and went on to dominate the second and third rounds. She never had Pascual hurt, but she expertly dictated range and landed front kicks to the body and leg kicks at will. She improved to 2-2 in the UFC with the win. This was her first UFC appearance at 145 pounds. Her previous three took place in the 135-pound bantamweight division.
Still to come:
(c) = defending champion
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Light heavyweight championship: Glover Teixeira (c) (33-7, 16-5 UFC, +175) vs. Jiri Prochazka (28-3-1, 2-0 UFC, -210)
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Women’s flyweight championship: Valentina Shevchenko (c) (22-3, 11-2 UFC, -625) vs. Taila Santos (19-1, 4-1 UFC, +450)
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Strawweight: Zhang Weili (21-3, 5-2 UFC, -165) vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk (16-4, 10-4 UFC, +140)
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Welterweight: Jake Matthews (17-5, 10-5 UFC, +120) vs. Andre Fialho (16-4, 2-1 UFC, -145)
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Welterweight: Jack Della Maddalena (11-2, 1-0 UFC, -160) vs. Ramazan Emeev (20-5, 5-2 UFC, +135)
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Middleweight: Jacob Malkoun (6-1, 2-1 UFC, +240) vs. Brendan Allen (18-5, 6-2 UFC, -300)
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Men’s featherweight: Seungwoo Choi (10-4, 3-3 UFC, -240) vs. Josh Culibao (9-1-1, 1-1-1 UFC, +200)
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Lightweight: Steve Garcia (12-4, 1-1 UFC, -180) vs. Hayisaer Maheshate (6-1, 0-0 UFC, +155)