5 Reasons to Watch UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux
A crazy summer schedule comes to an end this week as UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux lands in Nashville with a loaded card featuring several top-10 fighters. This will be the seventh UFC card in just under a month and the UFC will wrap up the incredible run with a main event matchup between two of the best light heavyweights in the world.
Just two fights ago, Glover Teixeira (22-4) was competing for the UFC light heavyweight title and his loss to former champion Jon Jones broke a nearly eight-year unbeaten streak for the Brazilian. Unfortunately, Teixeira also fell in his next fight, so this weekend's main event might be his last shot at getting back into title contention.
Meanwhile, Ovince Saint Preux (18-6) has proven to be one of the best prospects at 205 pounds with some of the most explosive striking in the division. He's earned back-to-back knockouts, and he'll look for three in a row this weekend while facing a top-five fighter in Teixeira.
Also on the card, Michael Johnson (17-8) will look to take another step towards a title shot in the lightweight division when he faces rising threat Beneil Dariush (11-1), who most recently dispatched Jim Miller in a one-sided fight against the former top-10 competitor.
With 13 fights and a ton of talent from top to bottom, this card has a little bit of something for everyone, but we're going to give you five good reasons to make sure you tune into UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux.
Do-or-Die Time
Mixed martial arts is a prisoner-of-the-moment sport. It means any fighter on the UFC roster is only as good as their last fight, and that's what Glover Teixeira has to deal with this weekend as he steps into the Octagon for the first time in 10 months.
It wasn't long ago Teixeira was on a 20-fight win streak as he approached a title fight against former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. Teixeira lost a lopsided decision to Jones, but then again, most fighters who have faced the prolific light heavyweight have fallen in a similar manner.
But Teixeira wasn't able to bounce back in his next fight and instead played rag doll to former NCAA wrestling champion Phil Davis. All of a sudden, the Brazilian went from contender to pretender.
The only way to prove otherwise is for Teixeira to go out and get a big win this weekend. Teixeira is more than capable of putting on some of the most entertaining fights in the entire division when he combines an iron chin with a slugger style that usually ends with his opponents on the canvas.
Teixeira is still ranked No. 5 in the world and with Davis out of the UFC and Jones on indefinite suspension, getting a win over a stud like Saint Preux puts him right back on track to title contention. A loss on the other hand probably pushes Teixeira to the lower half of the top 10 and at 35 years of age, the clock will be ticking on anybody riding a three-fight losing streak to get back in the hunt for gold.
OSP is the Real Deal
The light heavyweight division is one of the most top-heavy weight classes in the sport because when you examine the rankings, the best five fighters at 205 pounds are all champions, former champions and top contenders. Former University of Tennessee football player Ovince Saint Preux hopes to join that shark pit with a win this weekend over Teixeira.
Saint Preux has long been considered one of the best athletes in all of mixed martial arts, coming from his football background and adapting his incredible speed and strength to combat sports. Still, Saint Preux needed time to develop and he struggled in his first real test against a legitimate title contender in Gegard Mousasi while still in Strikeforce.
Saint Preux came to the UFC and has amassed an impressive 6-1 record, but his lone loss came against No. 3-ranked fighter Ryan Bader in his only shot to crack the top five previously. Saint Preux bounced back even better and quickly knocked out former UFC champion Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua and Patrick Cummins in consecutive fights.
Now he has a chance to face another top-five fighter and with a win, Saint Preux enters the conversation as a legitimate threat to the title.
Saint Preux is the perfect storm of athleticism and talent and if he can put it all together in one fight, there's not a fighter in the division he couldn't potentially beat. Before earning a shot at fighters like Anthony Johnson or Rashad Evans and claiming a spot atop the contender's race, Saint Preux needs to dispatch Teixeira this weekend.
The next serious contender at 205 pounds might just be born this weekend, so don't miss seeing Saint Preux put on a show for his home state crowd.
A New Title Contender Will Emerge
The lightweight division is just as dangerous as ever with the title changing hands multiple times in the past few years but with each passing card comes a new crop of talent trying to tackle the best of the best at 155 pounds.
This weekend features two of those fighters in the co-main event as Michael Johnson takes on Beneil Dariush in a very intriguing matchup in the lightweight division.
Johnson has been on a tear lately with four straight wins, including victories over Joe Lauzon and most recently, Muay Thai kicking machine Edson Barboza. Johnson has developed a striking game that's been unmatched lately and the kind of pressure he puts on opponents usually has them not only backing up, but quickly fading away as each minute expires against the former “Ultimate Fighter” runner up.
In the other corner stands Dariush, who came to the UFC with a reputation for having some of the best submissions in the sport, but he's quickly developed the other areas of his game, including a nasty Muay Thai striking attack honed under legendary coach Master Rafael Cordeiro.
Dariush is also riding a four-fight win streak into this weekend's event, and a win over Johnson would certainly propel him into the upper echelon of the lightweight rankings. These two lightweights both have their eyes on gold, but only one of them will still be on pace for a potential title shot in 2016 after Saturday night is over.
Middleweight Melee
The third fight from the top this weekend takes place in the middleweight division and features two of the more explosive finishers at 185 pounds.
Derek Brunson (13-3) comes from a wrestling background and when he chooses to take his opponents to the mat, he does so with flawless execution. Just ask Olympic silver medalist Yoel Romero, who Brunson took down three times while stuffing every attempt he had to get that fight to the mat when they met in early 2014.
While his pedigree might be in wrestling, Brunson has also developed a nasty striking game that has resulted in a couple vicious head kick knockdowns while combining an ever developing Brazilian jiu-jitsu game to finish fights as soon as he gets his opponents hurt. Brunson won his last fight against Ed Herman in just 36 seconds with a blistering fast knockout to pick up his second win in a row and fourth overall since joining the UFC.
Sam Alvey will certainly give Brunson everything he can handle and more, which is why this matchup is so interesting.
Alvey was a journeyman fighter who finally got the call to join the UFC a year ago, and he's definitely made the most of it lately. After suffering a loss in his debut, Alvey powered back with wins in his last three fights while finishing all of his recent opponents by first-round knockout.
Alvey flattened Cezar Ferreria two fights ago before stomping Dan Kelly in his home country of Australia in his last bout. Alvey has extremely heavy hands, and considering he trains under Dan Henderson, his wrestling isn't too bad either.
Chances are one of these guys is going to put the other one down before the final bell sounds, and that means either Brunson or Alvey could be walking out of Nashville with a nice $50,000 bonus.
Ladies Night
The world is still reverberating from the performance Ronda Rousey put on last weekend at UFC 190 when she crushed Bethe Correia in just 34 seconds, but the card this Saturday features two women who would love to get a shot at the bantamweight champion and prove they can not only give her a fight but possibly give her a loss as well.
Sara McMann (8-2) has already faced Rousey once in her career, and the fight ended in just 66 seconds. But the fact of the matter is the Olympic silver medalist in wrestling probably should have had a few more fights before getting the title shot in the first place. McMann is a supreme athlete with a skill set that could potentially give Rousey problems, but she's still developing and her fight this weekend will prove if she's made the necessary improvements to get back in the conversation for a title shot or if she's forever going to sit on the outside looking in.
Amanda Nunes (10-4) will look to put her name in the Rousey hat for the first time when she fights this weekend. The Brazilian is a fierce fighter, especially in the opening round, where she's as deadly as anybody at 135 pounds. Nunes came within a split second of finishing Cat Zingano two fights ago, and she made short work of Shayna Baszler in her last fight.
Nunes has to know this is a showcase opportunity for her to face a former title contender, and with a win, get on a very short list of potential opponents for Rousey in 2016. It wasn't that long ago that Nunes was seen as the best young prospect in the women's bantamweight division before Rousey ever arrived on the scene.
Nunes has a chance to recapture some of that hype if she can beat McMann this weekend.
Don't miss a minute of the action from UFC Fight Night: Teixieira vs. Saint Preux with our viewing and schedule guide.
