Jan Blachowicz with his injured eye
Jan Blachowicz released a statement following a crazy turn of events leading up to UFC 282
Dana White, president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, confirmed to ESPN on Wednesday that light heavyweight champion Jiri Prochazka had vacated his title due to a serious shoulder injury. At UFC 282 on December 10 in Las Vegas, Prochazka (29-3-1), age 30, was set to defend his title against Glover Teixeira. In an Instagram post on Wednesday, he explained that he had hurt his shoulder while training for the Teixeira fight, and thus had to give up the title. According to Prochazka, he needs surgery and will be out for at least six months, and it will take him well over a year to recover.
According to reports by MMA reporter Ariel Helwani, Jan Blachowicz was completely unaware of the main event bump because he was mid-air when the whole event transpired:
“Jan Blachowicz landed in Vegas minutes ago. He didn’t have wifi on the plane. He JUST found out he is now fighting for the belt on Dec. 10, he tells me. Had no idea until he turned his phone on. All this happened while he was in the air.”
UFC 282 will now be headlined by a clash between Jan Blachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev. The Polish MMA star released a statement following the crazy turn of events. He also tipped his hat to Jiri Prochazka who was a class act for not stagnating the division:
“That was the craziest several hours ever. I left Warsaw to take part in the eliminator match, and a few hours later I’ve arrived as a title challenger. I’m ready. Keep fingers crossed.
@jiri_bjp huge respect for your conduct! Get well! #UFC282″
The UFC offered Glover Teixeria a fight against surging contender Magomed Ankalaev for the now vacant light heavyweight throne, but the Brazilian declined. Teixeira wanted time to prepare for the completely different stylistic matchup, however, the UFC could not hold back the division.
Speaking with ESPN, Teixeira further shed light on the decision:
“I told them I needed more time for this guy, that he has a different style. The guy is a southpaw. I said, ‘What about fighting him in Brazil’ (at UFC 283)? They denied that and said they needed someone to fight in Vegas. I said, ‘OK, I’ll fight Jan in Vegas. If you’re going to throw me off, Jan has a regular stance. Ankalaev is a totally different game. I need more time.”
Furthermore he added: “I think I’ll fight the winner of the two, because I’m still the No. 1 contender. But they can take anybody they want. They can take someone not even ranked to fight for the title, because it’s their company.”
The way he sees it, this could probably be his last shot at the title and Glover Teixeira does not wants to leave any stones unturned in preparation:
“This could be my last chance to fight for the title. I want to win this belt. I’m training like a maniac. I am a professional. Every time I show up, I put on a great fight. Win or lose, I’m not going to go in there and just show up to fight a guy because they say so. This is a dangerous game, and I need to prepare myself the best I can. My family is watching me. I have a lot of students in the gym watching me. I need to be professional. So, I am 100 percent behind the decision I made.”
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