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Jan B?achowicz has the chance to write a unique bit of history at UFC 282, although the former light heavyweight champion admits that it wasn’t something he set out to do.
The 39-year-old was originally slated to compete as one half of the UFC 282 co-main event against Magomed Ankalaev. That matchup was viewed by many as a number one contender fight for the light heavyweight title, which Ji?í Procházka was scheduled to defend against Glover Teixeira in the card’s main event.
That title fight ended up falling through when Procházka sustained a serious shoulder injury that forced him to withdraw from the event. Rather than make the rest of the light heavyweight division wait for his return, the 30-year-old decided to willingly vacate his title.
With Teixeira apparently unwilling to face Ankalaev on short notice, the UFC elected to promote the matchup between B?achowicz and Ankalaev to main event status with the vacant title on the line.
Jan B?achowicz Focused On Belt, Not Circumstances
This will be Anakalev’s first opportunity at UFC gold, but B?achowicz finds himself in a position to claim the vacant light heavyweight title for the second time in his career.
Following a 2019 knockout loss to Thiago Santos, B?achowicz earned three-straight wins to put himself firmly in the title conversation. When Jon Jones vacated the light heavyweight belt in 2020, the Polish fighter was matched up with Dominick Reyes to crown the division’s new king.
Jan B?achowicz knocked out Reyes at UFC 253 to claim the title, and at the UFC 282 media day the 39-year-old was asked if he was disappointed at all to be fighting for a vacant belt again.
B?achowicz upset Dominick Reyes in 2020 to claim the vacant light heavyweight title. (Eric Jamison/Associated Press)
“You know, it’s not my fault,” B?achowicz answered. “I want fight against Jon Jones, but he don’t want fight against me. Nobody knows what he’s doing right now. And also, I want fight against Ji?í, but he chose the rematch. Now it’s injury, so it’s not my fault, you know? This is not what I choose. It is what it is, but it’s the championship you know? It’s the belt, this is the more important thing for me.”
The Polish fighter would be the first person in UFC history to win a vacant title on two occasions, but he’ll have difficult test in Ankalaev. The Russian has been tabbed as a title contender for basically his entire UFC career and has won nine fights in a row since dropping his UFC debut against Paul Craig via a last-second submission.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Jan B?achowicz has the chance to write a unique bit of history at UFC 282, although the former light heavyweight champion admits that it wasn’t something he set out to do.
The 39-year-old was originally slated to compete as one half of the UFC 282 co-main event against Magomed Ankalaev. That matchup was viewed by many as a number one contender fight for the light heavyweight title, which Ji?í Procházka was scheduled to defend against Glover Teixeira in the card’s main event.
That title fight ended up falling through when Procházka sustained a serious shoulder injury that forced him to withdraw from the event. Rather than make the rest of the light heavyweight division wait for his return, the 30-year-old decided to willingly vacate his title.
With Teixeira apparently unwilling to face Ankalaev on short notice, the UFC elected to promote the matchup between B?achowicz and Ankalaev to main event status with the vacant title on the line.
Jan B?achowicz Focused On Belt, Not Circumstances
This will be Anakalev’s first opportunity at UFC gold, but B?achowicz finds himself in a position to claim the vacant light heavyweight title for the second time in his career.
Following a 2019 knockout loss to Thiago Santos, B?achowicz earned three-straight wins to put himself firmly in the title conversation. When Jon Jones vacated the light heavyweight belt in 2020, the Polish fighter was matched up with Dominick Reyes to crown the division’s new king.
Jan B?achowicz knocked out Reyes at UFC 253 to claim the title, and at the UFC 282 media day the 39-year-old was asked if he was disappointed at all to be fighting for a vacant belt again.
B?achowicz upset Dominick Reyes in 2020 to claim the vacant light heavyweight title. (Eric Jamison/Associated Press)
“You know, it’s not my fault,” B?achowicz answered. “I want fight against Jon Jones, but he don’t want fight against me. Nobody knows what he’s doing right now. And also, I want fight against Ji?í, but he chose the rematch. Now it’s injury, so it’s not my fault, you know? This is not what I choose. It is what it is, but it’s the championship you know? It’s the belt, this is the more important thing for me.”
The Polish fighter would be the first person in UFC history to win a vacant title on two occasions, but he’ll have difficult test in Ankalaev. The Russian has been tabbed as a title contender for basically his entire UFC career and has won nine fights in a row since dropping his UFC debut against Paul Craig via a last-second submission.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Click here to view the article.
The 39-year-old was originally slated to compete as one half of the UFC 282 co-main event against Magomed Ankalaev. That matchup was viewed by many as a number one contender fight for the light heavyweight title, which Ji?í Procházka was scheduled to defend against Glover Teixeira in the card’s main event.
That title fight ended up falling through when Procházka sustained a serious shoulder injury that forced him to withdraw from the event. Rather than make the rest of the light heavyweight division wait for his return, the 30-year-old decided to willingly vacate his title.
With Teixeira apparently unwilling to face Ankalaev on short notice, the UFC elected to promote the matchup between B?achowicz and Ankalaev to main event status with the vacant title on the line.
Jan B?achowicz Focused On Belt, Not Circumstances
This will be Anakalev’s first opportunity at UFC gold, but B?achowicz finds himself in a position to claim the vacant light heavyweight title for the second time in his career.
Following a 2019 knockout loss to Thiago Santos, B?achowicz earned three-straight wins to put himself firmly in the title conversation. When Jon Jones vacated the light heavyweight belt in 2020, the Polish fighter was matched up with Dominick Reyes to crown the division’s new king.
Jan B?achowicz knocked out Reyes at UFC 253 to claim the title, and at the UFC 282 media day the 39-year-old was asked if he was disappointed at all to be fighting for a vacant belt again.
B?achowicz upset Dominick Reyes in 2020 to claim the vacant light heavyweight title. (Eric Jamison/Associated Press)
“You know, it’s not my fault,” B?achowicz answered. “I want fight against Jon Jones, but he don’t want fight against me. Nobody knows what he’s doing right now. And also, I want fight against Ji?í, but he chose the rematch. Now it’s injury, so it’s not my fault, you know? This is not what I choose. It is what it is, but it’s the championship you know? It’s the belt, this is the more important thing for me.”
The Polish fighter would be the first person in UFC history to win a vacant title on two occasions, but he’ll have difficult test in Ankalaev. The Russian has been tabbed as a title contender for basically his entire UFC career and has won nine fights in a row since dropping his UFC debut against Paul Craig via a last-second submission.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Jan B?achowicz has the chance to write a unique bit of history at UFC 282, although the former light heavyweight champion admits that it wasn’t something he set out to do.
The 39-year-old was originally slated to compete as one half of the UFC 282 co-main event against Magomed Ankalaev. That matchup was viewed by many as a number one contender fight for the light heavyweight title, which Ji?í Procházka was scheduled to defend against Glover Teixeira in the card’s main event.
That title fight ended up falling through when Procházka sustained a serious shoulder injury that forced him to withdraw from the event. Rather than make the rest of the light heavyweight division wait for his return, the 30-year-old decided to willingly vacate his title.
With Teixeira apparently unwilling to face Ankalaev on short notice, the UFC elected to promote the matchup between B?achowicz and Ankalaev to main event status with the vacant title on the line.
Jan B?achowicz Focused On Belt, Not Circumstances
This will be Anakalev’s first opportunity at UFC gold, but B?achowicz finds himself in a position to claim the vacant light heavyweight title for the second time in his career.
Following a 2019 knockout loss to Thiago Santos, B?achowicz earned three-straight wins to put himself firmly in the title conversation. When Jon Jones vacated the light heavyweight belt in 2020, the Polish fighter was matched up with Dominick Reyes to crown the division’s new king.
Jan B?achowicz knocked out Reyes at UFC 253 to claim the title, and at the UFC 282 media day the 39-year-old was asked if he was disappointed at all to be fighting for a vacant belt again.
“You know, it’s not my fault,” B?achowicz answered. “I want fight against Jon Jones, but he don’t want fight against me. Nobody knows what he’s doing right now. And also, I want fight against Ji?í, but he chose the rematch. Now it’s injury, so it’s not my fault, you know? This is not what I choose. It is what it is, but it’s the championship you know? It’s the belt, this is the more important thing for me.”
The Polish fighter would be the first person in UFC history to win a vacant title on two occasions, but he’ll have difficult test in Ankalaev. The Russian has been tabbed as a title contender for basically his entire UFC career and has won nine fights in a row since dropping his UFC debut against Paul Craig via a last-second submission.
Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.
Click here to view the article.
