Jan Blachowicz faced arguably the biggest setback of his MMA career earlier this year. The Polish fighter lost his belt against long-time UFC veteran Glover Teixeira at UFC 267. The fight against Teixeira was just his second title defense. In his maiden defense, he handed the unbeaten Israel Adesanya his first loss and derailed his quest for double champion status.
Blachowicz had to take the long road to a UFC title. At one point, the Polish fighter was close to being cut from the UFC after winning just two of his first six fights. However, Blachowicz turned his fortunes around and went on a tear, eventually capturing UFC gold. Therefore, Blachowicz is no stranger to building himself back up after a tough loss. The former champion plans to do exactly that in his return fight.
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A post put out by Ariel Helwani on Instagram stated, “There is an offer on the table for Jan Blachowicz x Aleksandar Rakic fight to headline a card on March 26, I’m told.”
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Jan Blachowicz vs Aleksandar Rakic:- a preview
Aleksandar Rakic burst onto the UFC with four wins on the trot against the likes of Jimi Manuwa and Devin Clark, among others. However, Rakic succumbed to a loss in his fifth fight in the promotion when he came up against Volkan Oezdemir.
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Since the loss, Rakic has notched two successive wins against the likes of Thiago Santos and Anthony Smith. Rakic is currently ranked 3rd in the UFC’s light heavyweight division. A win over a former champion will ensure that he cements his place as the number one contender for the title shot.
Going into the fight, Rakic will have a two-inch height advantage. However, Rakic and Blachowicz are identical in reach. Both men are strikers primarily, but Blachowicz displayed in his fight against Adesanya that he can fall back on his wrestling when needed.
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The same game plan might be tough to implement against ‘Rocket’, given he has a takedown defense of 90%. Which means that the fight will most likely be on the feet.
Who do you think takes the win between Jan Blachowicz and Aleksandar Rakic? Let us know in the comments below!