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Moved into headline spot
Tuivasa's scheduled heavyweight matchup against Marcin Tybura has been moved to the main event of UFC Vegas 87 on March 16, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
It's a bit disappointing to see a fan-favorite like Tuivasa fight at the UFC Apex instead of a capacity crowd that he likely would have seen at UFC 298, but he'll now get to defend his top-10 rankings spot in a main event. The announcement didn't disclose if it would be a five-round fight, however, which could be a disadvantage for a fighter like Tuivasa who tends to go for broke early. He was originally pegged as a (-125) favorite over Tybura -- a quality opponent who lost to now-interim champion Tom Aspinall in his last UFC appearance.
It's a bit disappointing to see a fan-favorite like Tuivasa fight at the UFC Apex instead of a capacity crowd that he likely would have seen at UFC 298, but he'll now get to defend his top-10 rankings spot in a main event. The announcement didn't disclose if it would be a five-round fight, however, which could be a disadvantage for a fighter like Tuivasa who tends to go for broke early. He was originally pegged as a (-125) favorite over Tybura -- a quality opponent who lost to now-interim champion Tom Aspinall in his last UFC appearance.
Scheduled against Tybura
Tuivasa will compete against Marcin Tybura in a heavyweight fight at UFC 298 in Anaheim on Feb. 17, according to Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Tuivasa will look to get back into winning ways with a win over Tybura. The former has not won any fights since losing to Cyril Gane back at UFC Paris in September 2022. Following the Gane loss, Tuivasa suffered back-to-back losses to Russian heavyweights Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov.
Tuivasa will look to get back into winning ways with a win over Tybura. The former has not won any fights since losing to Cyril Gane back at UFC Paris in September 2022. Following the Gane loss, Tuivasa suffered back-to-back losses to Russian heavyweights Sergei Pavlovich and Alexander Volkov.
Third straight stoppage loss
Tuivasa lost to Alexander Volkov via submission (Ekeziel choke) at 4:37 of Round 2 at UFC 293 on Saturday in Sydney, Australia.
ANALYSIS
It's rare to see Tuivasa is these prolonged fights, but he actually did pretty well here considering the massive edge Volkov possessed in terms of technical skill and all-around ability. Tai made a point to damage Volkov's lead leg with kicks, and it really worked. The issue for Tuivasa was that he absorbed too much damage at distance, which drained his gas tank and ultimately allowed his opponent force him to the mat and close the show. Tuivasa won five in a row from October 2020 to February 2022, all via knockout, but he's had three straight stoppage defeats since. The UFC needs to be a bit more careful regarding the quality the opposition it matches him up against.
It's rare to see Tuivasa is these prolonged fights, but he actually did pretty well here considering the massive edge Volkov possessed in terms of technical skill and all-around ability. Tai made a point to damage Volkov's lead leg with kicks, and it really worked. The issue for Tuivasa was that he absorbed too much damage at distance, which drained his gas tank and ultimately allowed his opponent force him to the mat and close the show. Tuivasa won five in a row from October 2020 to February 2022, all via knockout, but he's had three straight stoppage defeats since. The UFC needs to be a bit more careful regarding the quality the opposition it matches him up against.
Hometown fight scheduled
Tuivasa is scheduled to fight Alexander Volkov in a heavyweight bout at UFC 293 in Sydney on Sept. 9, per MMAJunkie.com.
ANALYSIS
Volkov will be Tuivasa's first opponent since he was knocked out by Sergei Pavlovich back in December. Fighting in his native Australia, Tuivasa has a 2-2 UFC record. He will be defending his No. 6 spot in the heavyweight rankings against the UFC's No. 7 HW, who is 6-4 across his last 10 fights.
Volkov will be Tuivasa's first opponent since he was knocked out by Sergei Pavlovich back in December. Fighting in his native Australia, Tuivasa has a 2-2 UFC record. He will be defending his No. 6 spot in the heavyweight rankings against the UFC's No. 7 HW, who is 6-4 across his last 10 fights.
Lasts 54 seconds in Orlando
Tuivasa lost to Sergei Pavlovich via KO (punches) at 0:54 of Round 1 at UFC on ESPN 42 on Saturday in Orlando.
ANALYSIS
There's not much to break down here from a technical standpoint. We have seen Tuivasa hang in there for prolonged periods of time against some of the best heavyweights in the world. He lasted less than a minute against Pavlovich. Having been knocked out just once in 17 professional fights entering the evening, Tuivasa ate a pair of jabs which put him on his back, and he was never able to recover. Tai has always struggled against better competition, and Pavlovich has the look of a future title contender, so this result, other than perhaps how it went down, isn't really a shock. Although he was coming off a knockout loss over Ciryl Gane in September, Tuivasa had won his prior five fights, all via knockout, so his roster spot is secure.
There's not much to break down here from a technical standpoint. We have seen Tuivasa hang in there for prolonged periods of time against some of the best heavyweights in the world. He lasted less than a minute against Pavlovich. Having been knocked out just once in 17 professional fights entering the evening, Tuivasa ate a pair of jabs which put him on his back, and he was never able to recover. Tai has always struggled against better competition, and Pavlovich has the look of a future title contender, so this result, other than perhaps how it went down, isn't really a shock. Although he was coming off a knockout loss over Ciryl Gane in September, Tuivasa had won his prior five fights, all via knockout, so his roster spot is secure.