3/17/24: Marcin Tybura Hands Tai Tuivasa Fourth Consecutive Loss

Also: Jose Aldo reportedly set for return fight at UFC 301

Welcome to a Sunday edition of the Knockdown Daily. We have a lot to cover today, including three different MMA events and a big return reportedly set for UFC 301. There’s a lot to discuss, so let’s dive right in.

Marcin Tybura Earns Early Submission Win, Hands Tai Tuivasa Fourth Consecutive Loss

Marcin Tybura had a successful outing in his return to the UFC cage, scoring a first-round submission to extend what is now the longest losing streak of Tai Tuivasa’s career.

Tybura submitted Tuivasa late in the first round with a rear naked choke, concluding a performance that saw the Polish heavyweight show his skills on the ground. The heavyweight clash headlined a “Fight Night” card from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

Tybura took Tuivasa to the ground in the second minute of the fight, landing in half guard. Tybura mentioned after the fight that the danger posed by Tuivasa’s striking—which had opened a cut on the left side of his head—made him decide to take the fight to the ground. 

“Once the cut happened, I knew I had to rush it further because I didn’t know how bad it was and it might stop me from fighting,” he said during the post-fight press conference.

Tybura took the back of Tuivasa moments after they went to the canvas. From his position he landed a series of clean, hard punches to the side of Tuivasa’s head. Tybura eventually stopped throwing these strikes and instead looked for a rear naked choke, which he almost immediately slipped under the chin of Tuivasa.

Tuivasa tried to fight off the choke, but wasn’t able to escape the position before it put him to sleep.

The main event was Tybura’s return after suffering a 73-second finish loss to now-interim heavyweight champ Tom Aspinall last year. The 38-year-old has now attained 12 wins since joining the UFC in 2016.

Tybura came into this weekend ranked 10th in the heavyweight division. With a win over Tuivasa, who currently sits ninth, he’s likely to climb up the standings next week.

Tuivasa, a fan favorite at heavyweight known for his finishing style, has now been stopped in four consecutive fights since 2022. Previous appearances include bouts against other notable names in the division, like veteran Alexander Volkov and former interim champ Ciryl Gane.

Saturday’s co-main event between Ange Loosa and Bryan Battle ended in controversy. The fight came to an end early in the second round with a no contest ruling, as Loosa told a referee he couldn’t see after suffering an unintentional eye poke. Battle, who had a strong first round in the fight, got in the face of Loosa and argued that he was looking for a way out of the bout.

Ovince St. Preux broke the UFC light heavyweight record for most career appearances lower on the main card when he beat Kennedy Nzechukwu in a split decision result. St. Preux has now made 25 appearances in the promotion’s light heavyweight division since his 2013 debut, surpassing the record of 24 fights set by Mauricio Rua.

Here are all of the results from Saturday’s UFC card:

Main Card (7:00PM EDT / 4:00PM PDT) (ESPN+)
Bout 13: Marcin Tybura def. Tai Tuivasa via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 4:08)
Bout 12: Ange Loosa vs. Bryan Battle via No Contest, Accidental Eye Poke (RD 2, 1:00)
Bout 11: Ovince St. Preux def. Kennedy Nzechukwu via Decision, Split
Bout 10: Christian Rodriguez def. Isaac Dulgarian via Decision, Split
Bout 9: Macy Chiasson def. Pannie Kianzad via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 3:54)
Bout 8: Gerald Meerschaert def. Bryan Barberena via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 2, 4:23)
Preliminary Card (4:00PM EDT / 1:00PM PDT) (ESPN+)
Bout 7: Mike Davis def. Natan Levy via Submission, Arm Triangle Choke (RD 2, 1:43)
Bout 6: Chelsea Chandler def. Josiane Nunes via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 5: Jafel Filho def. Ode Osbourne via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 4:27)
Bout 4: Danny Silva def. Josh Culibao via Decision, Split
Bout 3: Jaqueline Amorim def. Cory McKenna via Submission, Armbar (RD 1, 1:38)
Bout 2: Thiago Moises def. Mitch Ramirez via TKO, Strikes (RD 3, 0:15)
Bout 1: Chad Anheliger def. Charalampos Grigoriou via Decision, Unanimous

Jose Aldo Reportedly Set For Return At UFC 301

Former featherweight champion Jose Aldo is reportedly booked for his UFC return, coming out of his retirement MMA a little under two years after he walked away from the sport.

Aldo taken a fight against ranked bantamweight Jonathan Martinez for UFC 301 on May 4th in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The pairing was first reported by AgFight and has since been independently published by Marc Raimondi of ESPN.

The initial end date of Aldo’s illustrious MMA career was September 2022, a month after he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Merab Dvalishvili. He had a series of wins prior to his defeat against the bantamweight contender, including a 2020 victory over recent title challenger Marlon Vera.

While Aldo has been away from MMA since his 2022 defeat, he hasn’t been completely absent from combat sports. He appeared in three boxing appearances last year, including a draw against fellow UFC alum Jeremy Stephens.

Sources told ESPN that Aldo has remained under UFC contract throughout his recent boxing stint and currently still has one fight left on his contract.

The reported booking will be Aldo’s first MMA fight within his home country of Brazil in years. His last MMA bout in the country was a 2019 loss to Alexander Volkanovski. Two of Aldo’s recent boxing appearances took place in Brazil.

Martinez is a tough opponent for the returning Aldo. He is currently riding a six-fight winning streak, including fights over respected bantamweights like Adrian Yanez and Said Nurmagomedov. Martinez is currently ranked 14th in the division.

Aldo’s booking is a strong addition to a pay-per-view card that has been lacking in star power in comparison to other recent numbered shows. UFC Flyweight Champion Alexandre Pantoja will put his belt on the line in the main event, taking on fast rising Australian Steve Erceg.

KSW Bantamweight Champ Jakub Wiklacz Overcomes Zuriko Jojua In Competitive Five-Rounder

Jakub Wiklacz retained his KSW Bantamweight Championship in Poland this weekend, going the distance against Zuriko Jojua for a unanimous decision result.

Wiklacz had to get past an aggressive Jojua, who was able to cause trouble on the feet for the defending champ in the early rounds. The title bout headlined KSW 92, which took place Saturday from the Arena Gorzow in Gorzow Wielkopolski, Poland.

Wiklacz had a competitive stand-up battle against Jojua throughout the fight. Jojua most notably had a big moment with his striking skills in the second round, connecting with an overhand right that dropped Wiklacz.

Jojua found more success earlier in the fight, but struggled later on. This was illustrated by the fact that he was unable to earn a round on any of the three official scorecards following the second frame. The cardio of Jojua, who had never gone five rounds in an MMA bout before, had visibly become an issue for him in the later rounds.

Wiklacz had successful moments on the ground at points in the 25-minute battle. He controlled Jojua and attempted to work toward a finish when on the mat, getting on the back and searching for a rear naked choke in two different rounds of the fight.

Wiklacz now has his first win since becoming champ a little over a year ago. He picked up the title in late 2022, overcoming Sebastian Przybysz in a split decision. Przybysz faced Wiklacz in a title rematch after then—the fourth meeting between the bantamweights since 2017—although the fight produced an unsatisfying technical draw after four rounds.

The outcome on Saturday handed Jojua his first loss in seven years. He entered this weekend with a strong record of nine wins and one loss, including a 2022 fight against former KSW champ Antun Racic.

Former Champ Jewtuszko Gets Decision Nod Against Zaromskis In Double Retirement

In a fight that wrote the final chapter for two MMA veterans, former KSW champ Maciej Jewtuszko used his sharp striking to overcome a tough Marius Zaromskis.

Jewtuszko came close to a finish in a dominant stand-up performance, dropping Zaromskis to the canvas in the third round after scoring a clean spinning backfist. Zaromskis survived until the end of the third round, but was the clear losing fighter by the time the bout came to an end.

Jewtuszko’s career includes an eight-fight run in KSW and a brief time in other major MMA promotions. After picking up seven pro wins to start his career, Jewtuszko appeared at WEC 50 and beat Anthony Njokuani with a 95-second finish. He then went over to the UFC roster in 2011, losing a decision to Curt Warburton before departing the promotion.

The 43-year-old Polish fighter had a run with the KSW Lightweight Championship in 2012, submitting Artur Sowinski with a brabo choke to earn the belt. His time on top of the division was short lived, as an injury forced him to vacate the title before defending it once.

Lithuanian talent Zaromskis is retiring after an MMA career that spanned two-and-a-half decades. First debuting in the year 2000, he spent a large chunk of his early years building wins on the regional scene. He had a flawless run in Japanese promotion Dream starting in 2009, capturing their welterweight belt and winning an eight-man grand prix. He notably defended his welterweight championship on New Year’s Eve 2010, defeating MMA legend Kazushi Sakuraba.

Zaromskis’ career also included fights in Strikeforce and Bellator. He challenged for a Strikeforce title in 2010, losing a fight against Nick Diaz. He has been much less active in recent years, with Saturday being his sixth fight over the past decade.

Here are the quick results for KSW 92:

Main Card (2:00PM EDT / 7:00PM CET) (KSW PPV)
Bout 9: Jakub Wiklacz def. Zuriko Jojua via Decision, Unanimous (KSW Bantamweight Championship)
Bout 8: Piotr Kuberskin def. Michal Materla via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 4:55)
Bout 7: Daniel Rutkowskin def. Julio Cesar Neves via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 6: Miljan Zdravkovic def. Kamil Szkaradek via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 1:33)
Bout 5: Maciej Jewtuszko def. Marius Zaromskis via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Wiktor Zalewski def. Adrian Zielinski via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:32)
Bout 3: Wojciech Janusz def. Tomasz Jakubiec via Decision, Split
Bout 2: Oskar Szczepaniak def. Michal Gniady via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:00)
Bout 1: David Hosek def. Damian Mieczkowski via TKO, Injury (RD 1, 0:44)

Andy Clamp Stops Matthew Byfield With Ground and Pound To Earn Cage Warriors Belt

Nearly one-sided work on the ground from Andy Clamp earned him a finish win against Matthew Byfield on Saturday night, making him the fifth-ever undisputed Cage Warriors Light Heavyweight Champion.

Clamp stopped Byfield in the third round of their fight for the belt, closing out Cage Warriors 168 from the BEC Arena in Manchester, England this weekend.

Clamp found control of the fight when he took things to the ground, nearly putting away Byfield in the second round before eventually finding a finish in the following round. He was quick to get on the back of Byfield in both the second and third rounds, utilizing that position to search for a rear naked choke and land punches.

Clamp lost position briefly in the third round after trying for an armbar, but regained the spot just moments later with another takedown. While he wasn’t able to put away Byfield with a submission, Byfield’s inability to work out of a position that saw him consume a steady pace of punches and elbows caused the referee to step in.

Cage Warriors was without a light heavyweight champ heading into this weekend, as former titleholder Modestas Bukauskas relinquished the belt last year after signing back onto the UFC roster.

Clamp was coming off his first Cage Warriors win from last summer, submitting Ghassan Abdenabi in the first round with a rear naked choke. The English fighter has been a career-long finisher, with just one of his 13 wins coming via decision.

Byfield entered this weekend with a strong three-fight streak of stoppage wins in Cage Warriors since 2022. Saturday’s fight was the first time he has been finished in an MMA fight.

Gittins Scores Late Submission Against Hernandez To Defend Bantamweight Title

Liam Gittins defended his Cage Warriors Bantamweight Championship for the first time earlier on the night, closing out a stellar performance against U.S. prospect Roberto Hernandez in the fifth round with a rear naked choke.

Gittins had control of the fight from the early rounds to the end, using his striking to wear Hernandez down before eventually finding a finish. The incumbent champ was the advancing fighter through all rounds, walking Hernandez down with punches and leg kicks.

The leg kicks eventually became too much for Hernandez on the feet, dropping him to the canvas in the final frame. Gittins used this knockdown to gain control on the ground, eventually getting on the back of Hernandez for a rear naked choke attempt that forced a tap.

Gittins earned his 135-pound division title late last year, going five rounds against Reece McEwan for a unanimous decision victory. He has now picked up six consecutive wins in Cage Warriors.

Hernandez was getting the call-up to Cage Warriors’ European brand after showing promise on the promotion’s cards in California, USA. Hernandez came into this weekend on a nine-fight winning streak, including a win over UFC alum Trevin Jones last December.

Along with the two title fights at Cage Warriors this weekend, 10 other bouts took place. Undefeated featherweight prospect Luke Riley picked up his ninth pro win in the co-main event, overcoming veteran John De Jesus. Here are the quick results for the card:

Main Card (5:00PM EDT / 9:00PM GMT) (UFC Fight Pass)
Bout 12: Andy Clamp def. Matthew Byfield via TKO, Strikes (RD 3, 3:06) (Vacant Cage Warriors Bantamweight Championship)
Bout 11: Luke Riley def. John De Jesus via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 10: James Power def. Gianluca Rocca via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 9: Harel Cohen def. Adam Cullen via Decision, Split
Bout 8: Alessandro Giordano def. Sam Kelly via TKO, Strikes (RD 3, 4:17)
Bout 7: Liam Gittins def. Roberto Hernandez via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 5, 1:48) (Cage Warriors Bantamweight Championship)
Preliminary Card (2:30PM EDT / 6:30PM GMT) (UFC Fight Pass)
Bout 6: Tom Nicholls-Burton def. Craig Rawlins via Submission, Heel Hook (RD 3, 1:39)
Bout 5: Antonio Sheldon def. Tom Mearns via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Andy Yates def. Christian Tebbett via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 3: Michelangelo Lupoli def. Sheldon Ryan via Decision, Split
Bout 2: Fran Breen def. Costin Buhna via TKO, Strikes (RD 3, 1:21)
Bout 1: Mario Mingaj def. Qendrim Pallata via Submission, Triangle Choke (RD 2, 4:25)