ABU DHABI – Former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Volkan Oezdemir is happy Jiri Prochazka and Glover Teixeira are running it back.
Oezdemir, who is preparing to take on Nikita Krylov at UFC 280, will be looking to make it two wins in a row following his unanimous decision win over Paul Craig in July. As he builds towards another crack at UFC gold, Oezdemir has been keeping an eye on the matchups in his division, and is excited to see the UFC 282 main event rematch.
“I’m happy because it was a hell of an entertaining fight,” Oezdemir told MMA Junkie. “It’s nice to see this play again and maybe it’s going to be also a different result, so it’s actually pretty interesting.”
The first meeting between Teixeira and Prochazka was not only Fight of the Night, it is also the frontrunner for Fight of the Year consideration. Prochazka, who shared the cage with Oezdemir in 2020, won the bout with 28 seconds remaining in the fifth round, tapping Teixeira after an incredible back-and-forth war.
In the rematch, depending on how Teixeira shows up, Oezdemir is leaning in the former champ’s direction to come out with his hand raised.
“I didn’t see too much video about Glover (on) how his shape is right now,” Oezdemir said. “I need to see Glover because he’s getting older and older, so with the time and big wars like that, it just puts a toll on your body. So, with him being really 42 now, or 43, something like this, we need to see how well he handled the health, but I could see him taking the fight there.”
Currently ranked No. 15 in the USA TODAY SPORTS/MMA Junkie light heavyweight rankings, Oezdemir knows there is more work to be done if he hopes to get another crack at UFC gold, because there are a few names currently in a better position. Oezdmeir’s first shot at the title came against Daniel Cormier at UFC 220 in 2018, but was finished in the second round.
While he looks to keep building his resume, Oezdemir points to another name in the division, aside from former champ Jan Blachowicz, that should get a crack at the winner of the UFC 282 main event.
“I think the rematch is there for a reason,” Oezdemir said. “… I think (Magomed)Ankalaev is probably more deserving because he has a non-stop winning streak. So definitely, there is people in the mix for the title.”
