A light heavyweight scrap that has been verbally agreed upon looks like it could be headed to UFC 179, as Glover Teixeira will likely face Phil Davis on Oct. 25, 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
That's according to Teixeira, who told Porto do Vale Tudo (via MMA Fighting) he looks forward to facing and beating "Mr. Wonderful," a man who has quite a bit of popularity in Brazil. Davis fought there twice before; defeating Lyoto Machida at UFC 163 and Wagner Prado at UFC 153.
A win for Glover at UFC 179 would be the first step in climbing the ladder back to a title shot.
His words:
"My manager called me yesterday confirming the fight to Maracanazinho. It's going to be awesome to fight in Brazil again, in Rio de Janeiro. I'm really happy, training a lot. Fighting Phil Davis is going to be really good. He's popular in Brazil because he already fought and defeated some Brazilians. Now it's time to prove myself and start to climb the ladder again. I will train hard and fight hard. I want to fight for the title again next year."
Of course, as well-liked as Davis might be, he won't be the favorite come fight night, as the rabid Brazilian fans will undoubtedly be cheering for the local hero, Teixeira, to pull out the "W."
A victory is crucial for both men if they want to stay in the mix at 205 pounds, as both are coming off losses.
Glover was last seen at UFC 172, where he came up short in his bid to dethrone division champion Jon Jones. Davis, meanwhile, didn't have better luck in the co-main event, getting knocked around by a resurgent Anthony Johnson across three rounds of action.
UFC 179 will be headlined by a featherweight title fight, as division kingpin Jose Aldo puts his 145-pound title on the line for the second time against top contender, Chad Mendes.
A fight that will hopefully put an end to all their back-and-forth bickering.