When fighters approach 40-years old, sometimes they slow down a bit. The body doesn’t recover quite the way that it used to and training camps take a lot more out of you. Don’t tell that to Marcin Tybura though.
The Polish heavyweight turns 40-years old later this year, but he’s going harder than ever. His bout at UFC London on Saturday will mark his fourth in just a whisker over a full calendar year. That fact doesn’t even faze him.
“I actually don’t know. I didn’t realize it was just 12 months separating these four fights. But you know, I just take the opportunity in life,” Tybura said. “That’s how it comes. They offer me a fight, so I fight. The crazy thing was about the last fight that I took in like two weeks notice. This one was, I knew in advance, so it was less crazy.”
Part of that is always wanting to fight. Knowing that he may not have infinite time or may not know when the next offer will show up. However, some of it is also an appreciation for what the organization had done for him in years prior and knowing that he now needs to do that job.
“For me, my thing is like, whenever UFC offer me a fight, I just take it. I’ve been in my whole career that whoever I was offered, I was taking the fight. I was always agree,” he explained. “I’m sure UFC taking care of me too. I had the opportunity to fight with the bigger names, higher ranked opponents. Sometimes I managed to win, sometimes I lose. Sometimes you get something and sometimes you have to be the one who is opportunity for upper comer. And this is it for me – I just feel it’s part of my job.”
That next chance for an up and comer comes this Saturday at UFC London. Mick Parkin brings his 4-0 record into the bout and Tybura is ready for all the (relative) youngster brings.
“I feel like he’s a good kickboxer and he’s a very good cardio. I think he might not show lots of wrestling and grappling skills, but he trains with very good guys and I’m pretty sure he develops a lot. So I see his striking biggest weapon, but I think he’s a complete fighter,” Tybura said. “I see myself a complete fighter too. So we’ll see how he’s going to play out. I’m just focusing on building my skills in every aspect, whoever I’m fighting.”
You can catch Tybura’s fight with Mick Parkin as part of the UFC London prelims. That portion of the fight card begins at noon EST and airs on ESPN+.
You can also hear all of the audio of this interview on the latest edition of the Top Turtle MMA Podcast. The interview begins at 1:53.
