The narrative entering the UFC 275 main event between light heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira and top challenger Jiri Prochazka was that Prochazka needed to do everything in his power to stay off the ground if he wanted to become champion.
Prochazka threw the narrative for a loop by not only surviving on the ground round after round, but by eventually pulling off a submission of his own in the final 30 seconds of the fight to win the title in what was an all-time great fight.
Prochazka had brilliant moments throughout the fight, showcasing his trademark unorthodox striking to blast Teixeira. But, for all the challenger's moments, Teixeira had an answer at every turn, scoring takedowns and battering Prochazka on the ground.
Prochazka was left with a massive cut over his left eye from big Teixeira strikes from mount, but every time Teixeira appeared to have grabbed control, Prochazka would find a way out of trouble and back to his feet.
Not only was Prochazka surviving on the ground, at several points in the fight, Prochazka was the man in control on the floor, landing his own smashing ground-and-pound to draw blood from the Brazilian legend.
Then came the final round. With the fight seemingly in the balance, Teixeira put the fight on the ground and seemed to be fully in control until Prochazka was able to kick off the cage and reverse the position.
Shockingly, Prochazka saw Teixeira's exposed neck and locked in the rear-naked choke, squeezing with everything he had to force the tap at the 4:32 mark of Round 5.
Teixeira admitted as much after the fight, mentioning a hard weight cut while saying it was not an excuse before saying the body shots from Prochazka had sapped him of his stamina and left him unable to fight off the final submission.
Prochazka has now won 13 consecutive fights, all but one coming by stoppage. The submission was just the third of Prochazka's career and the first since 2014.
Teixeira said after the fight that he planned to fight on, drawing loud cheers from the Singaporean crowd. The loss snapped a six-fight winning streak for the 42-year-old, who, unlike Prochazka, took 21 fights in the Octagon to become world champion.