Marcin Tybura
Age: 32
Nationality: Polish
MMA Record: 16-4
UFC Record: 3-3
Notable Wins: Andrei Arlovski
Notable Losses: Fabricio Werdum, Derrick Lewis, Tim Johnson
Last Fight: TKO loss to Derrick Lewis
Fighter Profile: One of the top-10 heavyweights in the UFC, Tybura has shown flashes of brilliance so far in the Octagon, but he’s also disappointed at times. The big man has huge knockout power and we saw that on display in his wins over Viktor Pesta and Luis Henrique, but the fact he couldn’t put away Andrei Arlovski was disappointing. Since then he’s been on a big of a skid as he’s lost to Fabricio Werdum and Derrick Lewis in a fight he was winning right until he got caught late and finished. Tybura is a solid fighter and has skills on the feet and on the ground, but perhaps he’s not the elite title contender we’d all hope he would be.
Stefan Struve
Age: 30
Nationality: Dutch
MMA Record: 28-10
UFC Record: 12-8
Notable Wins: Stipe Miocic, Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
Notable Losses: Alexander Volkov, Alistair Overem, Mark Hunt, Junior dos Santos, Roy Nelson
Last Fight: Decision loss to Andrei Arlovski
Fighter Profile: A long-time top-15 heavyweight in the UFC, Struve has been very inconsistent ever since he stepped into the Octagon nearly a decade ago. With his long reach and height he has all the physical gifts to be a champion in this sport, but he’s never been able to put it all together. We’ve seen at times his knockout power and submission ability at work but we’ve also seen his biggest flaw and that’s his chin as he’s been knocked out six times in the UFC alone. That’s not a healthy number of knockout losses, and despite only being 30, Struve has taken a ton of damage in his career and likely doesn’t have many fights left.
Fight Breakdown: It’s another situation where a guy with powerful strikes takes on a guy with a bad chin and I have to go with the guy who hits hard in Tybura. I just don’t think Struve is going to be able to take a shot if Tybura connects on his chin, which is what I think happens here. I just think you have to fade Struve against anyone with knockout power and this situation is no different. If he gets brutally finished in this one like I predict, I could see the UFC cutting Struve or him possibly even retiring.
Prediction: Marcin Tybura via KO
