5 best moments from UFC Fight Night: Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura
Last night saw the UFC return to the Las Vegas APEX for another Fight Night event, and while it lacked name value, it turned out to be a decent watch.
UFC Fight Night: Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura had a distinctive submission flavor, with six bouts on the night ending via tapout.
But who had the best showing overall and what was the most exciting fight?
Here are the five best moments from UFC Fight Night: Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura.
#5. Jacqueline Amorim mauls Cory McKenna's arm in a nasty visual
On a night packed with submission finishes, Brazilian strawweight Jacqueline Amorim definitely produced the most visually nasty one of the lot.
She required just over 90 seconds to dispatch her foe Cory McKenna with an armbar, and it looked like the Welsh fighter's arm was in bad shape after the finish.
Amorim initially looked to have locked up a triangle choke/armbar combination to end the fight, but in a strange moment, referee Mike Beltran looked to stop the fight on the back of a partial tap.
Once he realized McKenna hadn't quite given up, though, he let the fight continue. Realistically, she'd have been better off giving up there.
Amorim instead transitioned into another armbar attempt, and this time there was no escape. She wrenched the Welsh fighter's arm all over the place, seemingly hyperextending it at the elbow before the tap came.
Sure, this wasn't as nasty as seeing Jamahal Hill's arm snap a couple of years back, but it was still a devastating submission. As one of the best moments of the night, it came as no surprise to see Amorim handed a $50k bonus.
#4. Jafel Filho impresses in submission win over Ode Osbourne
Very few fighters come away from a loss with their reputation enhanced, but that was definitely the case for Jafel Filho.
He almost broke the leg of hot prospect Muhammad Mokaev in their clash last year, but eventually succumbed to a third-round neck crank.
'Pastor' bounced back from this loss with a submission win in July, and last night, he delivered the goods again, impressing in a tapout over veteran Ode Osbourne.
Filho simply made this fight look easy. He took Osbourne down early, advanced into a dominant position to hunt for a choke, and when he couldn't get it, he beat the Jamaican down from mount.
Finally, Osbourne gave up the ghost, turning his back, and Filho needed no further cue to coax a tapout with a rear naked choke.
Based on this showing, 'Pastor' could be a dark horse contender in the UFC's flyweight division, and this win quite rightfully saw him claim a $50k bonus.
#3. Macy Chiasson repeats the trick to submit Pannie Kianzad
Back in 2018, Macy Chiasson choked out Pannie Kianzad to claim victory in the women's featherweight bracket of TUF 28.
Since then, both women have dropped down to 135 pounds for their UFC careers proper, but judging on their rematch last night, that's the only thing that has changed.
Despite Chiasson not having fought since September 2022 - and not having won since May that year - she looked phenomenal last night, submitting Kianzad again.
The fight was a scramble-heavy, fun one to watch, with Chiasson hunting for multiple submissions that 'Banzai' was forced to defend.
However, once Chiasson gained a dominant position - back control - the fight was basically over. She squeezed onto a tight choke and forced Kianzad to tap shortly after.
Unsurprisingly, the slick submission earned the TUF champion a $50k bonus, and it should be enough to shunt her into title contention in one of the UFC's thinner divisions, too. Overall, this was a great night for her.
#2. Gerald Meerschaert strangles Bryan Barberena unconscious and equals a UFC record
In the world of the UFC, there's no shame in tapping out to a perfectly executed submission hold.
Unfortunately, nobody seemed to have given that memo to Bryan Barberena in his fight with Gerald Meerschaert last night.
'Bam Bam' found himself caught in a nasty neck crank late in the second round, and realistically, he was never going to get out of it.
The fight was over - but Barberena refused to tap and ended up going unconscious, giving fans a scary scene that saw the veteran have his legs raised in the air to bring him around.
The finish marked an excellent showing from 'GM3', who largely dominated proceedings, particularly on the ground. He sliced through Barberena's defenses, and it only ever seemed like a matter of time before the fight was over.
Remarkably, the submission also meant that Meerschaert tied the great Anderson Silva for the record for the most finishes in UFC middleweight history.
While he'll never be as great as 'The Spider', this was an excellent finish and one of the best moments at last night's show.
#1. Marcin Tybura weathers an early storm to choke out Tai Tuivasa
The most dramatic moment of the night came in the headline bout, as Marcin Tybura weathered a serious storm to pick up a huge victory over Tai Tuivasa.
Early on, it looked like it would be Tuivasa's night. 'Bam Bam' looked angry from the off, and came into the fight looking for an early finish.
He hammered Tybura's head with short elbows from the clinch, opening up a huge gash on the Polish fighter's head.
However, the blood only seemed to drive Tybura on. He swung back with maximum force as the bout descended into a wild brawl, and then took Tuivasa down.
From there, the fight was all but over. Showing the same weakness he'd always shown throughout his UFC career, 'Bam Bam' looked lost on the mat - and Tybura easily cut through his defenses, took his back and choked him out.
The win keeps Tybura afloat in the UFC heavyweight division, and also made him $50k richer, too. Quite where Tuivasa now goes is anyone's guess, but this was a great main event to cap off a surprisingly decent night of fights.