UFC 283: Glover Teixeira vs. Jamahal Hill Preview, Odds, Prediction

Glover Teixeira and Jamahal Hill meet in the headliner of the UFC 283 this Saturday. This is the bout for the light heavyweight champion of the organization, with the title being vacated due to Jiri Prochazka’s injury late in 2022. It was expected to see Prochazka and Magomed Ankalaev, yet that didn’t happen. Teixeira vs. Hill was already in work, as many suggest, and it was supposed to be a title eliminator that would determine the rival for the next title challenge.

Preview

Glover Teixeira (33-8, +130) was already a champion, winning against Jan Blachowicz, but losing the belt in the very next matchup, which was against Prochazka, who, oddly, submitted one of the best grapplers in the division. It was a back and fourth event that could go either side, yet the Czech was on the winning side in the end.

Teixeira is a veteran who fought all the top names in the past 10+ years. He is fantastic on the mat, and there aren’t too many fighters who can escape his powerful grip. We also need to say that his fantastic power and cardio are very good for his age.

He fought Jon Jones in 2014, also for the light heavyweight title, and lost. Notable victims in his CV are Ovince Saint Preux, Rashad Evans, Ion Cutelaba, Anthony Smith, Thiago Santos, Nikita Krylov, and Blachowicz. In 41 pro-MMA battles, he has 33 wins, 18 of them via KO (mostly ground and pound), 10 by submission, and five via decision. Remember that he fought at the elite level for three decades.

Jamahal Hill (11-1-1, -150) emerged after a few very good performances and rapid improvement inside the octagon. The 31-year-old American has been in the media’s focus following three wins in a row, but many believe that he received this chance way too early.

Hill beat Jimmy Crute, Johnny Walker, and Thiago Santos all via TKO in the previous three bouts, and overall he has 11 wins, one loss, and one no-contest in his career so far. Other victories in the UFC are against Darko Stosic, and Ovince Saint Preux, while the only loss came against Paul Craig.

Hill is a big and pretty strong guy with that raw power and street-fighting style. Though, he upgraded almost all the areas of his battle in the past year. Now, regarding that doubt in him, as you could see, he had nowhere near the challenges that other elite light heavyweights had, and both his chin and cardio weren’t properly tested. Despite him beating Santos, he didn’t impress against a worn-off fighter who used to be good, but who is mediocre now.

Prediction

We are betting on Glover, because of his experience and style of fight. We saw Hill losing to Paul Craig, a dominant grappler and wrestler but also an average fighter overall. Now, Glover is way above that level, and with his reputation and power, this smells to him reclaiming the throne lost against Prochazka. Brazilian is a vicious grappler, while Hills’ ground skills aren’t very impressive. Furthermore, they are pretty modest when compared to his rivals’.

Pick: Glover Teixeira +130