TAMPA, Fla. - Glover Teixeria stopped Rashad Evans at 1:48 in the first round of a UFC Light Heavyweight title eliminator match Saturday night at Amalie Arena.

Teixeria, ranked fourth in the division, dropped Evans with a left hook to the chin. He added a flurry of punches while Evans was on the ground before referee Herb Dean stopped the fight. Teixiera (25-4) earned a $50,000 bonus for "performance of the night".

"Rashad is a great fighter and I was happy to fight him," Teixeria said. "This is what I do, I'm a fighter, I'm a warrior. Rashad is a warrior and I didn't take him lightly."

After the fight Teixeria called out Anthony "Rumble" Johnson, who attended the card. Johnson is apparently in line for a title shot but it might not happen until next year.

Jon Jones will fight Ovince Saint Preux for the interim light heavyweight title on April 23 in Las Vegas. The winner will have a mandatory title match against current light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, who is out with an injury.

"Rumble deserves the title shot, of course, and he's in line for it so it's up to him what he wants to do," Teixeria said. "But Cormier is going to fight the winner of Jones and Saint Preux and who knows when that fight is going to happen so I want to give him a job until then."

Evans (19-5-1), a former light heavyweight champion, has lost four of his past six fights.

"It's disappointing to say the least, but I've been in this sport for a while," Evans said. "I've been on top and I'm riding a real low right now. Nut when you're at this point you have re-evaluate things. I still want to fight but something has to change."

Also on the main card, Khabib Nurmagomedov improved to 7-0 in UFC competition when he beat Darrell Horcher by stoppage in the second round.

It was the first fight for Nurmagomedov (23-0) in nearly two years after dealing with knee injuries. Nurmagomedov, ranked second in the lightweight division, is in line for a title shot and is a likely opponent for the winner of the lightweight title match between current champion Rafael Dos Anjos and Eddie Alvarez.

"Two years away I felt like I was in jail," Nurmagomedov said. "When I fought tonight I was finally free. Now I want to go after the title."

Also, Rose Namajunas unanimously outpointed Tecia Torres in the women's strawweight bout, and Cub Swanson won a unanimous decision over Hacran Dias at featherweight.