Resilient Alexander Gustafsson, Glover Teixeira need Sunday UFC victory for one more title shot
It’s one thing to be physically defiant in the moment an opponent’s fist bloodies your face.
What Alexander Gustafsson and Glover Teixeira have shown in recovering from a combined three UFC light-heavyweight title losses is a mental doggedness that has brought them to meet each other Sunday in Stockholm.
“You’ve got to be tough in life,” Teixeira said. “You try to win. You’re fighting tough guys. Win or lose, you’ve got to go back to the drawing board and start working again. Keep your head positive, stay strong and keep working hard.
“Other people might get depressed. I’m a different way. I come home, see what I did wrong and start going forward.”
The 37-year-old Brazilian Teixeira (26-5) lost a unanimous decision to then-champion Jon Jones in 2014, and has gone 4-2 since, performing strongly by landing heavy punches in February while defeating the younger Jared Cannonier in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Teixeira has risen to No. 2 in the light-heavyweight rankings, a spot behind Gustafsson (17-4), as Sunday’s winner of the Fox Sports 1-televised bout at 10 a.m. Pacific should likely stand first in line to fight the winner of the July 29 UFC 214 main event in Anaheim between Jones and champion Daniel Cormier.
Gustafsson cut both Jones and Cormier in prior title fights, losing tightly contested decisions to both, in 2013 and 2015, respectively.
Gustafsson has fought just once since the heartbreak of the Cormier loss, defeating Jan Blachowicz by unanimous decision in September. He said he’s used the time to train intensely, reflect around wildlife in Sweden and wait for “the fight that made sense” to propel him back to a title shot.
Teixeira in Stockholm is that.
“All you can do is learn from losses. It’s tough, of course, to lose a title fight by a very close margin at the finish line,” Gustafsson said. “But either you allow it to destroy you or you let it make you stronger. That’s what I’ve been doing. Getting stronger, getting more experienced.
“It’s a mix of everything. Keep the pace, work more, hold on through the last round … to be the champion, you have to dominate. It can’t be a tight fight. That’s what I’ve learned.”
He said he’s “going to make sure I win on Sunday,” by being “fast … speed, footwork, and adapt to the fight. I know he’s going to come out the first few rounds trying to knock my head off. But I’m prepared for the best Glover, and if it goes the distance, it goes the distance.”
Teixeira admits he intends to immediately pursue Gustafsson with punches.
“That’s the plan, man,” Teixeira said. “He’s a guy who’s going to come to fight and finish a fight and my style is to go in, pressure, and try to finish it, too. It’s going to be interesting.”
Gustafsson’s training-camp partner, Jimi Manuwa, will be placed in a July 29 fight in Anaheim in case Jones falls off the card after testing positive for a performance-enhancing substance last year before a scrapped UFC 200 main event versus Cormier.
Gustafsson should receive that third title shot, however, against the July 29 winner.
“Let’s see what happens. I’ve got to get the ‘W,’” Gustafsson said. “I have my focus on Glover and nothing else. I’ll take it from there. It’s hard to plan the future when I’ll have a knockout machine on the other side of the octagon Sunday.”
The event at 16,000-seat Ericsson Globe in Stockholm comes less than a week since the terrorist attack at an Ariana Grande concert left more than 20 dead in Manchester, England, and less than two months after a terrorist attack from a hijacked truck left five dead in Stockholm.
“The event is good for us after you could see the people come together and support each other after our tragic event,” Gustafsson said. “It’s going to be a packed arena and show that people are just stronger. They aren’t afraid. It’s been amazing to see.”
Twitter: @latimespugmire
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