Marcin Tybura vs Blagoy Ivanov Prediction and Stats: Who will win at UFC Vegas 68?

Derrick Lewis will go head to head against Sergey Spivak to headline UFC Vegas 68. But his former opponents, Marcin Tybura and Blagoy Ivanov will also face each other on the main card. Although both fighters are in their mid-30s, neither has slowed down. As a matter of fact, both were victorious on their last trip inside the Octagon.

Blagoy Ivanov is a Bellator and WSOF (currently known as PFL) veteran. He made his UFC debut in 2018 against the former heavyweight champ Junior dos Santos. In his 6 fights since joining the company, Ivanov has a record of 3-3 inside the Octagon. Although he has been submitted once in his career, nobody was ever able to knock him out.

Marcin Tybura will fight Blagoy Ivanov at #UFCVegas68 on February 4th. (per @JohnMorgan_MMA) #UFC #MMA #UFCESPN pic.twitter.com/kCyF9Thih6

— Marcel Dorff 🇳🇱🇮🇩 (@BigMarcel24) December 22, 2022

Marcin Tybura, on the other hand, has been on a great run recently. He has won 6 out of his last 7 fights. It includes great wins over fighters like Greg Hardy, Walt Harris, Ben Rothwell, and Alexander Romanov. Alexander Volkov was the only fighter to beat him recently at UFC 267. Can Blagoy Ivanov be the second fighter to beat the Polish fighter since 2020? Let’s find out.

UFC Vegas 68: Marcin Tybura vs Blagoy Ivanov, Stats

Tybura vs Ivanov: Fight Breakdown

Blagoy Ivanov is a decorated sambo practitioner. He is a gold medalist in the 2008 sambo world championships. He has 6 submission wins under his belt but none of them have come inside the Octagon. As a matter of fact, he is yet to finish any of his opponents in the UFC. While it does not reflect negatively on him as a fighter, it does prove how hard it is to be dominant in the company.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Blagoyivanov (@blagoyivanovmma)

Marcin Tybura, on the other hand, has 4 KO wins in the UFC. He is known for his aggressive fighting style. Although he only lands 3.61 strikes per minute, Tybura mixes it up with 1.42 takedowns per fight as well. On top of his 9 KO wins, Tybura also has 6 submission wins in his career as well. So Blagoy Ivanov will have to be careful while implementing his wrestling-heavy style. While Tybura has been knocked out 3 times, nobody has submitted him just yet.

Ivanov averages 3.44 strikes per minute and 0.90 takedowns per fight. It just shows his defensive approach inside the Octagon. However, that may serve him well against Tybura, who has a great deal of power. As previously mentioned, Ivanov has a rock-solid chin. He is yet to be even knocked down! But Blagoy has 6 KO wins himself.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Marcin Tybura UFC fighter (@tyburamarcin)

So he may fancy his chances of getting a knockout win himself. But, judging by their recent reports, there remains a big possibility that the fight goes the full distance. However, Tybura is the one who has shown signs of better quality in recent times than Ivanov. So it looks like Tybura will be the favorite over the Bulgarian fighter this weekend.

Prediction: Marcin Tybura wins via decision at UFC Vegas 68