Thiago Santos: Teixeira Must Repeat Game Plan He Used Against Me to Dethrone Blachowicz

Thiago Santos is the only man to knock out Jan Blachowicz in his 16-bout UFC career, so he knows a little something about what it takes to beat the reigning light heavyweight champion.

Santos, who suffered a submission loss to Glover Teixeira last November, spoke to Sherdog.com about the light heavyweight title bout between Blachowicz and Teixeira at UFC 267.

“I´ve already faced both,” Santos said. “Blachowicz evolved a lot after our fight in 2019, and the champion is always the favorite. If I had to bet, I would say it´s 60/40 in favor of Jan. But if Glover repeats the game plan he used against myself, mixing striking and takedowns, he will confound Blachowicz and take his belt.

Santos believes Teixeira’s wrestling and grappling could be the difference in the title fight for the Brazilian veteran.

“The fight starts standing, and Blachowicz is a superior striker, but Glover is way superior on takedowns and also in the ground game,” Santos said. “If he takes Jan down and pressures him, just like he did to me, he can get him tired to submit him or impose his will through boxing in case it returns to the standup.”

“Marreta” helped Blachowicz when he was preparing to face Luke Rockhold in 2019, but even with that history, Santos doesn’t hide the fact that he is rooting for Teixeira.

“Glover sets an example as a person and fighter. He is a real samurai who always respects his opponent,” Santos said. “He deserves to finish his career with the gold at 42 years old, and I´ll be cheering for him on Saturday. But the only certainly is that it will be a great fight.”