Light Heavyweight Standout Glover Teixeira Signs with UFC, Expects May Debut

Long regarded as the finest light heavyweight operating outside the Zuffa umbrella, Teixeira this week finalized a long-rumored deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Speaking Tuesday with Sherdog.com, the 32-year-old Brazilian revealed that his first UFC outing is tentatively set for the spring.

“My debut will be around the end of May, I think, at an event in Las Vegas or Virginia, but I have no opponent,” Teixeira told Sherdog.com. “I’m very happy with it all. When I resolved my visa problems, it was a great joy, because I imagined I would sign with the UFC once everything was well underway. Now it’s another level of competition, since all the athletes there are very strong, and I’ll always be told well in advance so I can train and be at 100 percent for the fights.”

Teixeira enters the UFC on a 15-fight winning streak which stretches back to 2006 and includes victories over Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Ricco Rodriguez and Marvin Eastman. While some fighters on such a tear might have waited on the sidelines, the Minas Gerais native has kept active, racking up five wins in 2011 alone. Sitting out, he explained, was never an option.

“There’s no standing and waiting, so I kept fighting in Brazil,” said Teixeira. “Many people asked why I was risking it, since I could soon sign with the UFC, and I said it was better to always be fighting, keeping the pace. And if I fought and lost in Brazil, it might not be my time to fight in the UFC, but thank God, I got in and had great results.”

A former training partner of Chuck Liddell, the heavy handed BJJ black belt will head back to his homeland to prepare for his first Octagon outing.

“I’m leaving the US and going back to Brazil on March 2 to train for this fight. I need to have eight to 10 weeks to prepare. I’ll train with the staff at the Manguinhos Refinery with Pedro Rizzo running drills, and even Master Claudio Coelho should be there to help train. It’ll be great!

“I know I won’t have it easy in the UFC, but whoever they put me against, I’ll try to do well and get good wins. Whatever comes, I’ll be ready.”