Polish heavyweight Marcin Tybura was looking for his fourth consecutive win in 2020 when he faced Greg Hardy at UFC Vegas 17 on Saturday. In fact, the only knock on Tybura this year was his lack of a finish — something Hardy, the troubled former NFL star, had become known for in his brief MMA career.
The heavyweight duo traded leg kicks early, and Tybura showed plenty of stance switches. He’d eat a Hardy punch within the opening minute, but took it well, and continued to hold center, keeping the former NFL star on the outside. However, as the round wore on, Hardy came out, targeting the body, then clipping Tybura upstairs. The Polish fighter was dazed by at least one punch, although he maintained his composure. In the final minute, Hardy began clubbing Tybura with right hands, landing six in a row. Tybura was bloodied, but managed to stay standing and made it to the second round.
The question heading into round two was whether Hardy’s cardio would hold up. It held up well enough, especially given the first three plus minutes played out on the feet. But with over a minute remaining, Tybura scored a key takedown. He moved into half-guard, working to flatten Hardy out. He began dropping hammer fists and punches to the side of the head (with one or two straying to the back of the head, eliciting a warning from the ref). That completed the comeback for Tybura, as Hardy did nothing more than turtle up. The ref waved it off, with an exhausted Hardy sitting back against the cage, gasping for air following the beating.
🇵🇱 @MarcinTybura FLEXING THE POLISH POWER! The G&P closes it out! #UFCVegas17 pic.twitter.com/WmgYmbNLd4
— UFC (@ufc) December 20, 2020
That’s win number four in 2020 for Tybura, who has made the best of an otherwise terrible year.
Official Result: Marcin Tybura def. Greg Hardy by TKO, Round 2, 4:31
