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Prochazka rallies to submit Teixeira, wins UFC light heavyweight title in thriller

Yong Teck Lim / Getty Images Sport / Getty

A new era in the UFC light heavyweight division is upon us, and it took an unworldly effort from Jiri Prochazka to make that a reality.

Prochazka submitted Glover Teixeira with a rear-naked choke at the 4:32 mark of the fifth round in the UFC 275 main event Saturday night in Singapore to win the 205-pound title.

Down on the scorecards, Prochazka got on top of Teixeira late in the final frame. After spending a few moments in side control, he locked in the submission with no hooks in and forced the tap.

Going into the fight, Prochazka was known as a striker and it was believed Teixeira would have a major advantage in the grappling department as one of the top submission specialists in the sport. But the new champion said afterward he was confident he could finish the fight anywhere.

"I was ready to end it in the first or fifth round," Prochazka said in his postfight interview. "Doesn't matter. And it doesn't matter which technique."

The fight between Prochazka and Teixeira will go down as one of the wildest title bouts in UFC history. It featured multiple near-stoppages and several swings in momentum.

"It was a true war," Prochazka said. "Glover is a true warrior. And I like that."

In the first round, Teixeira secured an early takedown and floored Prochazka again a few minutes in. He advanced to full mount and landed ground-and-pound before Prochazka reversed the position and closed the frame with vicious shots on the mat.

The second round saw Prochazka mix it up on the feet and control the range. Prochazka, known for his unpredictable and wild style, rocked Teixeira with heavy punches and landed a variety of strikes. But then late in the stanza, opposite of the first round, Teixeira got into full mount and cut open Prochazka with heavy blows.

Prochazka had his best overall round in the third, pummeling Teixeira from top control. Teixeira had more success with his grappling in the fourth, attempting an arm-triangle submission. The choke seemed to be tight but Prochazka gave a thumbs up to the referee, signaling he was OK. When Prochazka got out, he wound up on top of his opponent and finished the round in that position.

Teixeira came out swinging in the fifth, rocking Prochazka with punches up against the fence. He made a mistake by pulling guard with Prochazka hurt and Prochazka got on top. Teixeira eventually made it back to his feet and continued to touch Prochazka with shots.

Late in the round, Teixeira went back to his grappling. He landed a takedown, made it to full mount once again, and rained down ground-and-pound. And then Prochazka reversed the position and locked in the rear-naked choke to secure the comeback victory and the light heavyweight belt.

"The choke, that came naturally," Prochazka said. "I just watched the moment (and saw) what opportunities (were) before me."

Teixeira would have retained the belt had he survived another 28 seconds as he was up on two judges' scorecards (39-37 and 38-37), according to the broadcast. The third judge had the bout tied 38-38 going into the fifth. Teixeira was likely ahead in the fifth before the finish.

Teixeira said in his postfight interview it was "definitely" tougher to control Prochazka on the ground than he expected. The former titleholder added that he had a difficult weight cut for the fight and that Prochazka landed some solid body shots that made him gas out.

"I say it all the time: Live by the sword, die by the sword," Teixeira said, adding he plans to "keep going."

Prochazka's win was the second-latest finish in UFC title-fight history, according to Fight Metric's Michael Carroll, only falling short of Demetrious Johnson's last-second submission of Kyoji Horiguchi in 2015.

With the victory, Prochazka, 29, moves to 3-0 in the Octagon. He made his UFC debut in July 2020 and immediately became a contender with knockout wins over former title challengers Dominick Reyes and Volkan Oezdemir. Prochazka, who made a name for himself in MMA as the Rizin FF light heavyweight champion, is now riding a 13-fight winning streak overall.

Teixeira, meanwhile, failed to successfully defend his title after winning it in stunning fashion against Jan Blachowicz at UFC 267 last October. The 42-year-old Brazilian's six-fight winning streak came to an end.

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