Teixeira in no hurry for belt ahead of his bout against Pavlovich, eyes Volkov next

Tallison Teixeira appears to be in no hurry to insert himself into the title bout today, May 30, at the UFC heavyweight title fight against Sergei Pavlovich.

He revealed in his latest interview his plans for knocking off two Russians back-to-back.

Xicao, in a latest interview, revealed he’s eyeing knocking off two Russians back-to-back before he becomes a serious contender for the UFC heavyweight championship.

“I see it in a more grounded way now,” Teixeira said in an interview with MMA Fighting.

He added, “I still see him as a really tough guy. Back then I said that ‘if I’m well prepared’ because I knew he was a very difficult opponent.

“But not much has changed for me. I still see him as a very dangerous guy, someone I need to be extremely well prepared to fight, but I think he’s lost a bit of that momentum and aggression he used to have, and I think that can work in my favor.”

“Ofcourse, when it’s time for our fight, he might go crazy like he used to, come forward recklessly and throw everything into that one punch and try to finish the fight right away,” he predicted.

Teixeira while explaining his preparation for the unpredictable matchup, said, “It’s a very unpredictable matchup. I trained for that possibility, but I also trained in case he taken a more measured approach, slows the fight down, and tries to win on points. I truly believe I’m very well prepared.”

“Even if I beat him, I don’t think I’d immediately be in the title conversation,” insisted Teixeira.

“Honestly, I don’t even want that yet. I think I still need one or two more fights before getting into that discussion. But it would put me in the top 5, maybe top 3," he continued.

Xicao revealed his next big step if he emerges victorious tonight, saying, “Maybe a fight with Volkov next would make sense. Two Russians in a row? That would be funny.”

Knocking out a top contender like Pavlovich would likely put the Brazilian in the top 10 heavyweights.

Teixeira is set for a matchup against Pavlovich in the UFC heavyweight 120 kg category on Saturday, May 30, at Macau, China.