Glover Teixeira wants to fight Jon Jones for title, not Gustafsson

UFC light heavyweight contender Glover Teixeira (21-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) says he would rather fight “Bones” as opposed to “The Mauler”, should he earn a 205-pound title fight with an impressive victory over Ryan Bader (15-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) this Wednesday at UFC Fight Night 28.

Texeira will look to follow the advice given to him by good friend Chuck Liddell and go for the finish over Bader this Wednesday, as he stated during his recent appearance on “The MMA Hour”:

“I believe so. I think I have to go in there and prove that I’m there for the title shot. I can’t go and do a boring fight. Chuck used to tell me all the time, ‘If you want to win fans and get fights and get to the title, go over there and excite the fans and prove and show yourself and beat these guys impressive.’ This is the way I been fighting. I go to finish all my fights, it doesn’t matter what way. I go for knockout, but if I see an opening I will go for the submission.”

Avoiding going to a judges decision has never been a problem for Teixeira, who has socred finishes in 18 of his 21 career victories.  

Teixeira admits he doesn’t favour Jones or Gustafsson in the title fight set for September 21 at UFC 165, but he would rather face “Bones” than “The Mauler” should he get the opportunity to vie for the strap, based on name value:

“It’s hard for me to say I’m rooting for him (Jones) because Gustafsson has been working hard and wants the title, but, in a way, yeah, if Jon Jones wins it’s better for me. If I get to fight the champion, it’s better fighting Jon Jones because he has the bigger name. It’s kind of like Weidman beating Anderson Silva. It’s great for him, but If someone goes now and beats Weidman its not the same thing, know what I mean?”

A win over Jon Jones would be a nice mark on any fighter’s resume; though a win over the towering Swede wouldn’t be too shabby, either.

For now, Glover needs to concern himself with defeating Ryan “Darth” Bader this Wednesday night in Brazil!