Tuivasa and Tybura Look to Right Ship in Apex Showdown

By
Gabriel Gonzalez
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Tai Tuivasa, UFC 269 Official Weigh-In Credit: Gabriel Gonzalez/Cageside Press

Tai Tuivasa and Marcin Tybura will be looking to get back in the win-column when they collide at UFC Vegas 88.

It’s hard to believe that Tai Tuivasa has been in the UFC for more than half a decade now.  After making his debut in 2017, the Australian powerhouse has made a name in the world’s largest organization behind electrifying knockouts of some of the most formidable foes that the land of giants has to offer.  But when fighting the best in the world, one runs the risk of not always leaving the cage with their hand raised.  Such is the situation for the UFC’s shoey king as he enters the cage looking to snap a three fight skid.

To Tuivasa’s credit, his recent slump is nothing to be ashamed of; his losses came against title threats like Ciryl Gane, Sergei Pavlovich, and Alexander Volkov.  But in the cutthroat world of combat sports, one is only as good as their most recent performance and Tuivasa will be looking to give himself and fans reason to celebrate.  At 31 years-old, he is still in his athletic prime and could himself for another run at the belt.  Carrying a loyal fan base that most fighters would love to have, it’s not out of the question that a rapid turnaround is possible.

Though not as celebrated, Marcin Tybura has also spent the better part of the last decade on the roster and performed well in the shark tank that is the UFC’s heavyweight division.  Making his debut in 2016, Tybura has also faced some of the best that the promotion has to offer in the likes of former champion Fabricio Werdum, Andrei Arlovski, Serghei Spivac, Derrick Lewis, and more en route to becoming a highly regarded veteran.

At 38 years-old, “Tybur” is no spring chicken even by heavyweight standards.  Last July, he had an opportunity to upset the future interim title holder Tom Aspinall in what was the the Englishman’s first fight back from an injury.  In the end it was not to be as Tybura found himself on the wrong end of a first round stoppage.  Now going into another main event against a younger foe, Tybura is looking to prevent his first back-to-back skid since 2019 and keep his own hopes alive to make his way back up the rankings.

With the current landscape and timetable, it would appear that the logical fight for the winner would Jairzinho Rozenstruik who won his own Apex headliner two weeks ago.  Tybura has had two dates with Rozenstruik fall through (both in 2022) while Tuivasa has yet to cross paths with the Surinamese striker during their tenure with the UFC.

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