Glover Teixeira Retires From MMA at UFC 283
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira has retired from MMA at 43 years old. Teixeira left his gloves in the center of the octagon after his main event loss to Jamahal Hill at UFC 283.
At the end of the bout, Teixeira announced his retirement in his birth country, Brazil.
“In reality, I think I am too tough for my own good; too tough for my own health,” Teixeira said in his Octagon interview. “I can’t keep up anymore. I am going to focus my energy on Alex Pereira, Poaton; he is going to keep his belt for while, then go up to light heavyweight. It is an honor to put the gloves down the same night as Shogun (Rua). I wish we were in the Royce Gracie era where you can just go, no rounds, but we are not and I’m just not keeping up anymore.”
Teixeira went on his shield at UFC 283. It is certainly a bittersweet ending to a legendary career, but it is also poetic in a way.
Despite failing to recapture the belt at UFC 283, Teixeira once again showed why he is a legend of the sport. In all honesty, Teixeira was a step behind for most of the bout; however, the majority of fighters would not have had the heart or will to make the full five rounds.
That determination and no-quit attitude will be what Teixeira is remembered for. After all, he was able to win the light heavyweight championship for the first time at the age of 42. There is a strong chance that no other fighter will be able to accomplish that feat.
Teixeira ended his MMA career with a record of 33-9 with a UFC record of 16-7. More impressively, he was able to hang with the best fighters in the sport until his final fight. That is something few fighters are able to say.
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