Midnight Mania! Tybura Penned As Plan B For UFC London Main Event

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The main event clash between Tom Aspinall and Alexander Volkov scheduled for this weekend (March 19, 2022) in London, England is at risk. Though it’s hardly the most important consequence, the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine has notably impacted the combat sports world and Russian athletes in general. Notably, visas are getting far more difficult to come by for Russian fighters, which could impact Volkov.

To be clear, Volkov’s visa was issued previous to the conflict, and he’s already in London. Nevertheless, it remains unclear if he will actually be allowed to compete.

“I had my doubts that this fight wouldn’t take place, especially last week, but it really wasn’t in my hands,” Aspinall said. “When the BBBoC [British Board of Boxing Control] banned all Russians from fighting in the UK, I was like, ‘oh s—t, here we go’, but thankfully, so far so good. It was difficult not to know about Volkov. You can lose your *** or just focus on yourself, there were days when I almost lost my ***. Whether he can come or not, my reaction doesn’t change that. There’s still a backup that’s here in case anything changes at the last minute.”

It’s since been confirmed that Marcin Tybura is the backup fighter mentioned.

A longtime UFC vet, Tybura is currently the No. 9-ranked Heavyweight contender. His last bout actually came vs. Volkov, a highly competitive decision loss in October 2021. Prior to that bout, Tybura had won five fights in a row. Hopefully, his services won’t be needed, but Tybura was clearly the best nearby option in the event that Volkov is barred from competition.

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