Swedish mixed martial artist Alexander Gustafsson (16–2) still remains the No.1 UFC light heavyweight contender after mauling down undefeated striker Jimi Manuwa this weekend at UFC Fight Night 37. This unofficially means he gets the winner of Jones vs. Teixeira that takes place at UFC 172 in Baltimore, Maryland.
On Saturday in London, MMA fans got to witness another dose of precision striking by Gustafsson who dropped Manuwa with a knee followed by a flurry of punches in the clinch, in the second round of the main event. Gustafsson won the fight by TKO, which earned him both Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night bonus awards. That’s right! He pocketed $100,000 in bonuses. With a performance like that, UFC President Dana White granted him another title shot in the stacked light heavyweight division.
During the UFC Fight Night 37 post-fight presser, White said,
If Jones wins, we have a nasty rematch, If [Jones] doesn’t, it’s [Gustafsson] vs. Teixeira.
Clearly if Jon Jones (19-1) wins, which he should in my opinion, it’s the fight Gustafsson wanted the day the judges favored Jones in a very close unanimous decision at UFC 165 in September 2013. At the presser, Gustafsson sounded just like Rocky’s greatest opponent, Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) with his Swedish accent, but this time he wants to do more than just get the belt.
I want to fight him, and I want to finish him.
Expect to see another epic battle with Jones, if Jones manages to pull off the win over Teixeira on April 26, 2014.
