On Sunday, at the O2 Arena in London, Marcin “Tybur” Tybura will square off against Tom Aspinall in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Fight Night.
The mouth-watering heavyweight main event will be a litmus test for both fighters.
For Tybura, the urge to keep the fight streak going will remain the primary objective. The Polish martial artist has tiptoed through the ranks, securing seven wins in his last eight bouts and will feature in his second main event, since his UFC debut in 2016.
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Despite recently winning against experienced fighters like Alexandr Romanov and Blagoy Ivanov, Tybura enters the fight with the odds stacked against him. Such is the stature of the British veteran he will face.
Aspinall meanwhile, comes into the fight after a 12-month hiatus after suffering a knee injury just seconds into the fight against Curtis Blaydes back in July 2022. Incidentally, the freak accident happened at the same venue, in front of his home crowd. The number five-ranked heavyweight will look to rewrite the story this weekend, exactly a year later.
Ahead of the fight, Tybura reveals his action plan, his favourite type of win, the MMA scene in Poland and the thrill of taking on Aspinall in his backyard, in an exclusive interview with Sportstar.
Excerpts from the interaction:
You are coming into the fight on the back of two consecutive wins, how are you feeling ahead of the fight against Aspinall?
Yes, I feel good and focused. My goal is to stay focused on myself and my game plan. I am the underdog going into this fight but my goal still is of winning and hopefully, the winning streak continues.
Aspinall was forced to take a break due to an injury and has been out of action for close to a year. Do you think that will give you an edge over him?
I mean I don’t know; he has the home crowd with him in London. But yes, I am confident and I hope that confidence helps in the fight. Maybe, we could see a new version of Tom in the upcoming fight but I will remain prepared for anything that comes.
I really hope people are rooting for me because I’m the underdog here and there’ll be a lot of hype for Aspinall. For people who are supporting me, I hope you guys enjoy my fights and no, you won’t regret supporting me. I will give my 200% in the fight. I will try to go there and knock him out.
Eight of your last 10 fights have gone the full quota of three rounds. Do you like long games or is it just a random pattern? Asking this because prior to that you’ve had a whopping 10 first-round finishes. What has changed?
I always look for that early finish but fighting in the UFC, against these exceptional fighters, it’s not easy. It’s not like I want a long fight, I always look for a first-round finish and that is how I want to approach the next fight as well.
Adding to the previous question, were the long fights a result of an extra emphasis on cardio training?
I don’t focus much on cardio actually. I work hard on the mat and push the wrestling and grappling as hard as possible. Although, I’ve increased my cardio for some time now. Instead of outright cardio exercises, I spend time at the gym and practice a lot of breathing exercises with my coach.
15 out of your 24 wins have been outright finishes. What is your favourite type of win?
When I started my professional career, my initial wins were submissions but now I mostly prefer knockout finishes. For example, my win against Viktor Pesta. Doesn’t happen to me often but if I had to choose between the two, I would prefer a knockout win.
You’ve been in the fighting profession for quite a while, from 2006 to be precise. How has the sport changed in the time you’ve been associated with it?
I do like the changes in the sport, change is natural. Now, fighters are not judged on one particular skill like before. Nowadays, people expect a fighter to be well-rounded and fully prepared for whatever comes their way. There are things that I don’t like as well such as MMA street fights but there are people who want that as well, so I’m getting used to it. As far as UFC is concerned, I think it’s getting organised well and I really like it.
There have been numerous fighters from your country Poland, including Blachowicz. What’s the reason behind that and can you elaborate on the fighting scene back in your country?
MMA in Poland in my opinion is fully evolved. It has become a popular sport in my country and organisers are coming forward to host big events there. Week in and week out, you can see a lot of fighters finding the limelight. Our people are very proud of former champion Blachowicz and fighters like him have made MMA popular in our country.
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