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Fight By Fight Preview | UFC Fight Night: Tuivasa vs Tybura
Setting The Stage For Saturday’s Action Inside The Octagon With A Look At Every Matchup
By E. Spencer Kyte, on X @spencerkyte
Last weekend in Miami, the best on-paper fight card of the year produced an electric evening of fights at UFC 299, culminating in “Suga” Sean O’Malley turning in a statement effort to successfully defend the bantamweight title for the first time.
This week, the action shifts back to the UFC APEX in Las Vegas for a prospect-laden card capped by the second heavyweight main event of the month, and we’ve got the details on each and every matchup slated to hit the Octagon on Saturday night for you below.
Here is this week’s Fight-By-Fight Preview.
Main Event: Tai Tuivasa vs Marchin Tybura
Ranked heavyweights looking to begin the year with a big victory meet in this weekend’s main event as Tai Tuivasa squares off with Marcin Tybura.
Tuivasa, who turns 31 on Saturday, enters on a three-fight slide, having lost consecutive outings to Ciryl Gane, Sergei Pavlovich, and Alexander Volkov. He won five straight prior to his current skid and has always been an all-action fighter, which means you can expect him to come out of the gates quickly on Saturday as he looks to get back into the win column.
Following a rocky start to his UFC tenure, Tybura has grown to be a rankings fixture over the second half of his run inside the Octagon, carrying a 7-2 mark over his last nine fights into this weekend’s bout with “Bam Bam.” After having his two-fight winning streak snapped last time out, the Polish veteran will be eager to avoid a losing streak here.
Each of these men have lived on the fringes of contention for much of their UFC careers, and with the heavyweight division in a state of flux at the moment, a big effort for either on this weekend in Las Vegas could aid them in moving forward in the second half of 2024.
Other Main Card Matchups
Bryan Battle vs Ange Loosa
Bryan Battle and Ange Loosa face off in a clash of ascending welterweights in Saturday’s penultimate pairing.
TUF 29’s Battle posted a pair of victories in 2023, blasting through Gabe Green in 14 seconds in his hometown of Charlotte in May before submitting AJ Fletcher in the second round of their September 23 encounter. The 29-year-old is 3-1 since moving to welterweight and 5-1 overall inside the Octagon, showing flashes of upside and further development each time he makes the walk.
Loosa came up short in his bid to earn a place on the roster through Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS), running into Jack Della Maddalena on the annual talent search series, but since then, he’s gone 3-1, including having posted back-to-back wins inside the Octagon. After out-lasting Fletcher in a battle of attrition in the summer of 2022, “The Last Ninja” defeated Rhys McKee in his lone appearance last year, elevating his record to 10-3 overall with the win.
Ovince Saint Preux vs Kennedy Nzechukwu
Mainstays in the light heavyweight division meet here as Ovince Saint Preux faces off with Kennedy Nzechukwu.
“OSP” makes his 27th UFC start in this one, seeking a return to the win column after suffering a knockout loss at the hands of Philipe Lins in his lone appearance last year. The long-time Top 15 talent turns 41 next month and has struggled to earn positive results as of late, entering with just four victories in his last 10 starts.
A DWCS grad and Fortis MMA product, Nzechukwu has teased making major strides in the division, but hasn’t taken the next step yet. After submitting Devin Clark at UFC 288 last May, he ventured into the Octagon opposite Dustin Jacoby in August and landed on the wrong side of a first-round stoppage, halting his three-fight winning streak and ascent up the rankings.
This is the kind of fight that is going to tell us everything we need to know about each man and where they stand at this very moment. A win for Saint Preux shows he’s still got something left in the tank, while a victory for the “African Savage” prevents a slide and keeps him stationed just on the outskirts of the Top 15 heading into the second quarter of the year.
Christian Rodriguez vs Isaac Dulgarian
Promising young talents Christian Rodriguez and Isaac Dulgarian meet in this intriguing featherweight fixture.
Rodriguez posted a pair of impressive wins in 2023, besting Raul Rosas Jr. and Cameron Saaiman at bantamweight, but lost to the scale both times, hence the move up here. Dulgarian impressed in his first trip into the Octagon last year, running through Francis Marshall to push his record to 6-0 and continue his streak of never seeing the second round.
Pannie Kianzad vs Macy Chiasson
Top 10 bantamweights clash on the main card this weekend as Pannie Kianzad and Macy Barber share the Octagon in a rematch of their meeting at the TUF 28 Finale.
Currently positioned at No. 6 in the rankings, Kianzad dropped her lone appearance of 2023 to Ketlen Vieira. The Iranian-born Swedish mixed martial artist is 6-3 in her nine bouts since last facing Chiasson, including wins over Jessica-Rose Clark, Alexis Davis, and Lina Lansberg.
A teammate of Nzechukwu’s at Fortis MMA, Chiasson competes for the first time in well over a year with designs on kick-starting a run to contention by storming through Kianzad on Saturday. The 31-year-old is 5-3 in eight UFC starts, but her last two setbacks have come against championship-tier talents, having lost to current titleholder Raquel Pennington and title challenger Irene Aldana.
Chiasson got the better of things when these two squared off in the finals of the TUF 28 featherweight competition in November 2018, so it will be interesting to see what has changed in the five years and change since their first meeting and how fighting at bantamweight impacts things, as well.
Gerald Meerschaert vs Bryan Barberena
Veteran middleweights get the main card action started on Saturday as Gerald Meerschaert takes on Bryan Barberena.
The 36-year-old Meerschaert makes the 53rd start of his professional MMA career this weekend, looking to snap a two-fight losing streak. He dropped back-to-back outings against Joe Pyfer and Andre Petroski in 2023, but had won four of five before that, all by way of submission.
Following a number of years as a tough out in the welterweight division, Barberena moved to middleweight last July, landing on the wrong side of the results against Makmoud Muradov in his second straight appearance in London. Hard-nosed and indefatigable, the American “Bam Bam” will look to kick off a good night for athletes with that nickname by getting his 2024 campaign off to a positive start on Saturday.
Preliminary Card Fights
Natan Levy vs Mike Davis
The prelims wrap in the lightweight division, with Natan Levy and Mike Davis meeting in a battle of DWCS alums.
After losing his promotional debut, Levy has posted back-to-back wins inside the Octagon, most recently earning a unanimous decision victory over Genaro Valdéz in December 2022. Davis similarly dropped his first appearance under the UFC banner, but has subsequently earned a trio of wins, including consecutive victories on the cards over Mason Jones and “Slava Claus” Viacheslav Borshchev.
Josiane Nunes vs Chelsea Chandler
Josiane Nunes and Chelsea Chandler face off in the first of Saturday’s two bantamweight pairings.
Nunes enters on a nine-fight winning streak, with her last three victories coming inside the UFC Octagon. After winning her promotional debut in a catchweight bout at 140 pounds, Chandler landed on the wrong side of the results in a featherweight contest opposite Norma Dumont last time out.
Thiago Moises vs Mitch Ramirez
Veteran lightweight Thiago Moises welcomes Las Vegas’ own Mitch Ramirez to the Octagon for the first time in this short-notice matchup.
Moises touches down at the UFC APEX aiming to rebound after getting run over by Benoit Saint Denis last fall in Paris. The Brazilian standout is 5-3 over his last eight appearances, registering three finishes, and remains one of the tougher outs amongst the unranked set in the 155-pound weight class.
Tagging in for Brad Riddell, Ramirez gets the opportunity to make an instant splash in his UFC debut. The Syndicate MMA man rebounded from his DWCS loss to Carlos Prates last August with a first-round stoppage win at LFA 173 in December, and returns to the APEX looking to spring an upset on Saturday.
Jafel Filho vs Ode’ Osbourne
Jafel Filho and Ode’ Osbourne meet in a battle of all-action flyweights that promises to be exciting for as long as it lasts.
After dropping his debut to Muhammad Mokaev in March, Filho returned to action in July and registered a first-round stoppage win over Daniel Barez to get back on track. Beginning his fifth year on the roster, Osbourne enters off a second-round stoppage loss to Asu Almabaev and brandishing a 4-4 mark through his first eight UFC appearances.
Josh Culibao vs Danny Silva
Australian Josh Culiboa welcomes DWCS Class of ’23 grad Danny Silva to the Octagon for the first time in his intriguing featherweight clash.
Culibao had his four-fight unbeaten streak snapped last time out by ranked Brit Lerone Murphy, while Silva earned his place on the roster with a grimy win over resilient Angel Pacheco last summer on the Contender Series.
Jaqueline Amorim vs Cory McKenna
Brazilian jiu jitsu standout Jaqueline Amorim looks for her second straight UFC victory as she welcomes Cory McKenna back to the Octagon for the first time since the close of 2022.
Amorim lost her debut in April, but bounced back in August, earning a third-round submission win over Montserrat Conejo. Injuries kept McKenna sidelined for all of last year, but the 24-year-old returns having won each of her last two appearances and three of four since graduating to the UFC.
Charalampos Grigoriou vs Chad Anheliger
Saturday’s action opens in the bantamweight division as Charalampos Grigoriou makes his promotional debut opposite veteran Chad Anheliger.
Born in Cyprus and fighting out of Longo and Weidman MMA, Grigoriou scored a one-minute win over Cameron Smotherman to earn his UFC contract last summer on Dana White’s Contender Series. Anheliger got his shot through the annual series as well, edging out Muin Gafurov on Season 5 before going 1-2 over his first three appearances inside the Octagon.
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