Glover Teixeira was less than 30 seconds from successfully
defending his light heavyweight title at UFC 275, but that amount
of time proved to be a relative eternity.
Teixiera succumbed to a rear-naked choke from Jiri Prochazka at the 4:32 mark of the fifth round in Saturday’s main event at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore, ending his six-fight winning streak in the process. After the defeat, Teixeira released a brief statement on Instagram in his native Portuguese.
“We got hit a little bit there but I gave my best in this fight,” Teixeira said (translation via MMAFighting.com). “But the hand came in the neck, I was very
tired, and I think I didn’t believe [in the submission]. I should
have turned, but now it’s too late to cry over spilled milk. Live
by the sword, die by the sword.
“I gave my best and it wasn’t enough, but let’s go for the next one. Thank you to all of you that root for me for the support. I’m fine, just a few cuts, but let’s go.”
It was the first submission defeat of Teixeira’s 41-fight professional career. Prior to the finish, the 42-year-old Brazilian had plenty of moments in which he appeared to have his opponent on the brink of defeat. It wasn’t meant to be, however, and Teixeira congratulated Prochazka in a separate social media post.
“Thank you for [an] amazing fight,” he wrote. “Today was your day…enjoy it.”
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