USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, March 19: Marcin Tybura makes a move at heavyweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 239 in Las Vegas.

After a big win in the main event at UFC Fight Night 239, [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] is making moves at heavyweight.

Tybura (25-8 MMA, 12-7 UFC) took out Tai Tuivasa (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) with a first-round submission in Las Vegas. He’s won eight of his past 10 fights with setbacks against current interim champion Tom Aspinall and former Bellator champ Alexander Volkov, and he moves to No. 7 on the charts. Tuivasa took a slight tumble and is on a four-fight skid, but the losses have been to some of the elite in the division.

Also at the event, Macy Chiasson (10-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) submitted Pannie Kianzad (17-8 MMA, 5-5 UFC) in the first round and made a big leap at women’s bantamweight.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

Mick Maynard’s Shoes: What’s next for Marcin Tybura after UFC Fight Night 239 win?

See who Marcin Tybura should fight next after his victory over Tai Tuivasa in the UFC Fight Night 239 headliner.

(ALSO SEE: Mick Maynard’s Shoes: What’s next for Tai Tuivasa after UFC Fight Night 239 loss?)

[autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] joined a short list of fighters to rack up a dozen or more career octagon victories in the heavyweight division after he put away Tai Tuivasa in the UFC Fight Night 239 main event.

Tybura (25-8 MMA, 12-7 UFC) used his grappling prowess to take down and submit the inferior Tai Tuivasa (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) inside the first round at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, achieving his first main event victory under the UFC banner.

The result put Tybura back on the winning track after a quick TKO loss to Tom Aspinall in July, but where does he go from here?

Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on Tybura’s future after UFC Fight Night 239.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.

UFC Fight Night 239 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: Ovince Saint Preux leads with $21,000

UFC Fight Night 239 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 239 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $189,500.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC Fight Night 239 took place at the UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 239 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Tai Tuivasa[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Bryan Battle[/autotag]: $4,000
vs. [autotag]Ange Loosa[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Ovince Saint Preux[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Kennedy Nzechukwu[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Christian Rodriguez[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Isaac Dulgarian[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Macy Chiasson[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Pannie Kianzad[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Gerald Meerschaert[/autotag]: $16,000
def. [autotag]Bryan Barberena[/autotag]: $16,000

[autotag]Mike Davis[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Natan Levy[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Chelsea Chandler[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Josiane Nunes[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Jafel Filho[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Ode Osbourne[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Danny Silva[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Josh Culibao[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Jaqueline Amorim[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Cory McKenna[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Thiago Moises[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Mitch Ramirez[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Chad Anheliger[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Charalampos Grigoriou[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2391 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2024 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $1,551,500
2023 total: $8,188,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $24,258,500

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.

Marcin Tybura lukewarm about Jairzinho Rozenstruik’s callout after UFC Fight Night 239

Marcin Tybura responds to Jairzinho Rozenstruik’s callout after Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 239.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] got called out by [autotag]Jairzinho Rozenstruik[/autotag] fresh off his return to the win column.

The veteran heavyweight picked up a submission win over Tai Tuivasa (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) pm Saturday in the main event of UFC Fight Night 239 at the UFC Apex. The victory was a bounce back from his TKO loss to now-interim champion Tom Aspinall in July 2023. Just minutes after the win, Rozenstruik called out Tybura (25-8 MMA, 12-7 UFC) for a fight.

“I kind of feel like I’ve always been a fighter who doesn’t reject fights, so if the UFC (wants it),” Tybura said when asked about Rosenstruik’s callout at the UFC Fight Night 239 post-fight press conference. “I’m not exactly one to respond, but if the UFC wants to do it, I will agree. But I’d rather have someone higher ranked.”

Tybura and Rozenstruik do have some history. They were supposed to fight in January 2022, but their fight was moved to a few months later. Weeks before the matchup, though, Tybura withdrew from the fight due to injury.

Tybura thinks a fight with Rozenstruik would go very similar to his first-round submission of Tuivasa.

“The thing is that I owe it a little bit to Jairzinho because our fight was scheduled a year ago or so, and I had to reschedule it, and then I pulled out from the fight because I had some health issues. So that’s maybe the fight I will have to do.”

Tybura is open to fight Rozenstruik, but he’s really hoping to get someone higher ranked. He has no specific name in mind, but just wants someone ahead of him.

“I didn’t bring any name because I really just wanted to focus on this one and get back in the win column, so right now I don’t have anyone in my mind,” Tybura said. “But anyone in the top 10 would be great. Right now it’s more like a celebration, and that’s it.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.

UFC Fight Night 239 results: Marcin Tybura sees own blood, promptly submits Tai Tuivasa

Tai Tuivasa was left snoring thanks to a Marcin Tybura rear-naked choke in the UFC Fight Night 239 main event.

In a division known for power and knockouts, [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] showed that for a big guy, he knows a thing or two about grappling.

In the UFC Fight Night 239 main event, Tybura (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) overcame a slicing Thai attack and submitted [autotag]Tai Tuivasa[/autotag] (24-9 MMA, 11-8 UFC) by rear-naked choke at 4:08 of Round 1.

Tuivasa drew blood early with a hard standing elbow that gashed Tybura’s forehead. Relatively unfazed, Tybura stood for a few more exchanges. He ducked under a Tuivasa combination and grabbed a double leg. Though Tuivasa initially defended successfully, Tybura eventually muscled him down.

Once on the canvas, Tybura moved from half guard to back mount and landed ground-and-pound all the way. Tybura wrapped his arm under Tuivasa’s neck. There was a brief struggle as Tuivasa attempted not to slip under, but eventually his consciousness evaporated. A few snores later, referee Herb Dean intervened and the fight was over.

With the win, Tybura reenters the win column after a quick July loss to Tom Aspinall. Tybura has now won three of his most recent four outings.

Since his UFC debut, Tuivasa has proven streaky when it comes to results. He started his UFC tenure 3-0, then lost three straight. He then won five in a row, and has since lost four straight.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 239 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.

UFC Fight Night 239: Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 239 odds between Tai Tuivasa vs. Marcin Tybura, with MMA picks and predictions.

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In a 5-round heavyweight bout in the main event, Tai Tuivasa and Marcin Tybura meet Saturday at UFC Fight Night 239 — also known as UFC on ESPN+ 97 and UFC Vegas 88 — at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the UFC Fight Night 239: Tuivasa vs. Tybura odds, and make our expert picks and predictions.

The prelims begin at 4 p.m. ET, and can be viewed on ESPN+, while the main card starts at 7 p.m. ET, also on ESPN+.

Records: Tuivasa (15-6-0) | Tybura (24-8-0)

The southpaw Tuivasa takes the walk looking to halt a 3-bout losing skid. “Bam Bam” suffered a 2nd-round submission loss to veteran Alexander Volkov last time out at UFC 293, and he was knocked out by Sergei Pavlovich and Ciryl Gane in the 2 prior fights.

Tybura is also coming off a loss, as he suffered a KO/TKO loss in just 73 seconds against Tom Aspinall in the main event in late July in a Fight Night in London. Prior to that, the Polish-born fighter had won 7 of his previous 8 fights, with 6 of those bouts going the distance.

Tuivasa holds a slight 3.98-to-3.55 significant strikes landed per minute, although Tybura is a little more accurate at 59.17% with those strikes, to just 51.92% for the Aussie. Tybura also checks in with a 1.39 takedown average and 33.90% takedown accuracy percentage while barely a blip on the radar with a 0.07 submission average. However, Tuivasa is zeroed out in all of those categories, rarely going to the ground game if he can help it.

Watch this card with ESPN+ by signing up here.

UFC Fight Night 239: Tuivasa vs. Tybura odds

Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 1:25 p.m. ET.

  • Fight result (2-way line): Tuivasa -115 (bet $115 to win $100) | Tybura -105 (bet $105 to win $100)
  • Over/Under: 1.5 rounds (Over -125 | Under -105)
  • Will the fight go the distance? (Yes +400 | No -700)

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UFC Fight Night 239: Tuivasa vs. Tybura picks and predictions

Fight result (2-way line or moneyline)

TUIVASA (-115) is thirsty for a victory, and he should be able to get it if he is able to keep his feet. Tybura (-105) will want to get the Aussie out of his comfort zone and onto the mat. If Tybura can do that, he has an opportunity to get the job done.

However, Tuivasa should be able to keep this bout upright and go toe-to-toe with Tybura in a brawl. If he does that, he’ll go the same route as Aspinall and make quick work of Tybura.

In fact, playing TUIVASA BY KO/TKO OR DQ (+100) at even-money on the 7-way method of victory category isn’t a bad option. There is no sense paying a little extra and doing the 5-way method, with Tuivasa by KO/TKO, DQ or submission (-105), as the ground game just isn’t an option for the slight favorite.

Over/Under (O/U)

UNDER 1.5 ROUNDS (-105) is a good play here if you’re backing Tuivasa. If the favorite gets the job done, he is going to get it done quickly. On the flip side, if you’re leaning Tybura on the moneyline, then you’ll want Over 1.5 Rounds (-125). For Tybura to hang around, he’ll need to force this to the canvas. If he can do that, he’ll hang around past the midway point of Round 2, and then some. However, that’s not what is expected.

Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.

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For more sports betting picks and tips, check out SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter/X. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter/X and us on Facebook.

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UFC Fight Night 239 video: Tai Tuivasa, Marcin Tybura make weight in Las Vegas

The main event for the UFC’s latest home show is official after the big men made weight Friday.

LAS VEGAS – The main event for the UFC’s latest home show is official after the big men made weight Friday.

Ahead of UFC Fight Night 239 (ESPN+), which takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex, heavyweights [autotag]Tai Tuivasa[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 8-6 UFC) and [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] (24-8 MMA, 11-7 UFC) stepped on the scale at the official weigh-ins.

Check out the video from their trips to the scale above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.

UFC Fight Night 239 headliner Marcin Tybura admits postponement from UFC 298 ‘damaged’ preparation

Marcin Tybura wasn’t thrilled when he fight with Tai Tuivasa was pushed back a month to the UFC Fight Night 239 main event.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] wasn’t thrilled when he received the call that his fight with Tai Tuivasa would happen a month later than expected.

Originally scheduled to be part of February’s UFC 298 lineup, the heavyweight bout between Tybura (24-8 MMA, 11-7 UFC) and Tuivasa (15-6 MMA, 8-6 UFC) was postponed to Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 239 main event at the UFC Apex (ESPN+).

Although it’s now a headlining bout with five rounds, Tybura admits the adjustment of date disrupted his preparation in a negative way.

“When the fight was moving it was a little bit hard because you already the camp and you’re just a little bit tired and you’re waiting for the final days, and it’s rescheduled,” Tybura told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s media day. “So that’s a little bit damaged to the camp schedule. But it was cool. It’s always nice to see your face on the fight posters. I agreed because I know there was some problems with Tai there.”

There’s positive and negatives to the situation for Tybura. As a durable grappler, he having five rounds and 25 minutes at his disposal could play into his favor. He would prefer to end it early, but he knows that’s an inherent advantage against Tuivasa, who has never been known for his cardio.

“I think Tai is an exciting fighter,” Tybura said. “Fans love him. For sure the first thing that comes to mind is his heavy hands. He’s strong. He tries to finish. He’s dangerous every second of the fight. That’s pretty much it. That’s how I would describe him.

“I don’t mind the cardio-wise going 25 minutes. I’ve been doing this before and I’m pretty sure about my cardio. But my approach is always go for the finish. Try to finish the fight. I’m hoping to get that done.”

For Tybura, UFC Fight Night 239 represents an important opportunity to get back on track. He faltered in his most recent bout, suffering a quick TKO loss to Tom Aspinall in July’s UFC Fight Night 224 main event in London. Tybura is uplifted to see that Aspinall has gone on to become interim heavyweight champion, but he wants to put that result in the past vs. Tuivasa.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 239.

Tai Tuivasa opens as slight favorite for UFC Fight Night headliner vs. Marcin Tybura

Whether or not Tai Tuivasa gets back to his winning ways in March will be a close call, according to oddsmakers.

Whether or not [autotag]Tai Tuivasa[/autotag] gets back to his winning ways will be a close call, according to oddsmakers.

Tuivasa will look to snap a three-fight losing skid when he takes on [autotag]Marcin Tybura[/autotag] in a heavyweight main event at UFC Fight Night on March 16 from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

According to DraftKings, Tuivasa has opened as only a slight betting favorite at -125, with Tybura returning as the slightest of underdogs at +105. With odds this tight, there’s a good chance the fight could be a pick ’em or flip in favor of Tybura by the time they’re locked in the cage.

Tuivasa (15-6 MMA, 8-6 UFC) aims to snap a three-fight skid that consists of finishes against Ciryl Gane, Sergei Pavlovich, and Alexander Volkov. Prior to the rough stretch, Tuivasa was on a five-fight winning streak and nearing title contender status.

Tybura (24-8 MMA, 11-7 UFC) is 2-2 in his last four fights. He most recently lost by TKO to Tom Aspinall in July. The fight lasted only 73 seconds.

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC fights announced in the past week (Jan. 8-14)

There were 35 UFC fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Jan. 8-14.