Canadian Kyle Prepolec and Poland’s Mateusz Rebecki both found themselves in must-win territory on the UFC Belgrade preliminary card on Saturday.
Rebecki entered on a three-fight skid, while Prepolec was 0-4 across two UFC stints, and coming off back-to-back losses opposite Benoit Saint-Denis and Drew Dober.
Rebecki had his hands going early in the fight, and soon worked his way to a single-leg takedown, with just over four minutes early on the clock. From there, the Polish fighter worked the body, landing punch after punch, then moving to the head. Prepolec was already showing damage, and struggled to create enough space to scramble. Instead, Rebecki stayed on him, adding more ground n’ pound and repositioning each time Prepolec appeared to have an exit.
Prepolec’s only offense, meanwhile, was to punch back at Rebecki, who with two minutes left had tied up his opponent’s legs with his own. For a moment, they essentially boxed on their knees, Rebecki even landing an uppercut. It wasn’t enough to put Prepolec away, but it was a one-sided performance from Rebecki. And entering the final minute, with Kyle Prepolec unable to escape, Rebecki turned up the volume, landing blow after blow to the side of the head. Prepolec briefly had a whizzer, couldn’t hold onto it, and went back to his knees with Rebecki putting away the fight shortly thereafter.
Official Result: Mateusz Rebecki def. Kyle Prepolec by TKO, Round 1, 4:41
