The UFC debuts on Fight Island on July 11, 2020 with UFC 251. It’s a major event headlined by three title fights. Kamaru Usman finishes the night defending his welterweight title against Jorge Masvidal, stepping in for Gilbert Burns, who had stepped in to take Masvidal’s spot. Beyond that game of musical chairs, Alexander Volkanovski defends his title for the first time against Max Holloway in a rematch. You also have Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo for the vacant bantamweight title.
Lower on this very stacked card you will see a slew of debuting fighters. One of those being Russian heavyweight Maxim Grishin, going up against veteran Marcin Tybura (18-6 MMA, 5-5 UFC). Tybura was originally supposed to fight Alexander Romanov, but he pulled out.
Maxim “Maximus” Grishin
6’3″
Light-heavyweight
36-years-old
Stary Oskol, Russia
Akhmat Fight Club
30-7
15 KO/TKOs
6 Submissions
How will Grishin fare in the UFC:
First of all, Maxim Grishin is very deserving of a UFC opportunity after being in the sport for so long. He’s beat some stiff competition and his last loss was to surging UFC light heavyweight Magomed Ankalaev almost four years ago.
Grishin is a methodical fighter. He picks his shots, as he’s not a volume striker. Grishin is a good counter-striker and is excellent at kicking the lead leg of his opponent. He will at times wrestle and when on top, he is pretty good at taking the back. I would think that his submission game is probably his best weapon. Defensively he’s very good, hardly taking any damage on the feet, and his takedown defense is solid. His cardio is also pretty good going the distance nine times, fighting at the same pace the entire time. Grishin is a good fighter but his low output is a bad quality and the killer instinct isn’t where it should be at 205. I think he will do well in the UFC but I don’t think he’ll ever crack the top 15. More so I think Grishin will be a guy who will test the up-and-comers.
How does Grishin match up with Tybura:
It’s an interesting fight being a really tough one to pick a winner. On the feet, I can see this fight spending a lot of time in the clinch. Grishin is coming up a weight class so it’s very possible that Tybura bullies him around. Both have solid takedown defense which makes me think this fight will stay standing. Both have a low output which makes this fight going the distance more likely to happen. I’m leaning on the side of Tybura just because I think he brings the pressure more.
