UFC Fight Night: Gustafsson vs Teixeira - A Battle For Redemption

The UFC returns to Stockholm Sweden on Saturday nigh, a matter of days after the city hosted the Europa League final between Manchester United and Ajax.

There may be less fanfare surrounding the event at the Ericsson Globe Arena than there was for the UEFA football showpiece, but the stakes are just a high for the individuals at the top of the card.

The main event sees light heavyweights Alexander Gustafsson and Glover Teixeira face off in a battle between two former title contenders looking to claw their way back into the discussion for one more hurrah at the 205lbs championship.

Swede Gustafsson will be the crowd favourite on Saturday night as he looks to secure back-to-back victories for the first time since December 2012. The 6ft 5ins Alliance MMA star is still only 30, but it’s fair to say he has experienced his share of ups and downs in recent years.

Nobody before or since has run Jon Jones as close as Gustafsson did in their 2013 light heavyweight title bout at UFC 165. The Swedish fighter became the first man to take “Bones” down inside the Octagon on his way to an incredibly close split-decision defeat.

READ MORE: CORMIER’S LEGACY RESTS ON UNCERTAINTY OF EVENTUAL REMATCH WITH JONES

A rematch seemed a formality, but the fight took longer to put together than anticipated and, once the bout was official, Gustafsson was forced to withdraw due to a knee injury. Since then, the towering Swede has lost two of his four fights — including coming out on the wrong side of a 2015 decision against current champion Daniel Cormier — and has admitted to having considered retirement after growing disillusioned with the sport.

A win over Jan Blachowicz last year has got him back on the right track, however, and the 30-year-old appears to have rediscovered his drive. A win over the veteran Teixeira on home soil would go a long way towards seeing him return to the upper echelons of the division.

Teixeira has also fought and lost to Jones in a title fight, suffering a severely injured shoulder at the hands of the American at UFC 172 in April 2014.

Five years Gustafsson’s senior, Teixeira’s need for wins to fire himself back to contention is more pressing than his opponent’s, which is perhaps why he has remained so active in recent years, making six Octagon appearances since that defeat to Jones.

Last time out, in February this year, the Brazilian bounced back from a 13-second knockout loss to Anthony Johnson by beating Jared Cannonier in Hamburg, Germany.

The meeting between Gustafsson and Teixeira on Saturday night will pit two big, heavy-handed light heavyweights against each other in a bout which could come to represent a fork in the road of each man’s career.