A heavyweight banger is set to take place on December 3 between Tai Tuivasa vs Sergei Pavlovich on the main card of UFC on ESPN 42. Tai Tuivasa will make his 13th appearance in the UFC, while Sergei Pavlovich will make his sixth appearance with the promotion.
Tuivasa is coming off a third-round knockout loss to the No.1-ranked heavyweight contender Ciryl Gane, while Pavlovich is coming off a first-round knockout win against No.7-ranked Derrick Lewis. Both fighters have knockout wins over ‘The Black Beast’.
Tai Tuivasa stands at 6’2″ (188 cm) and has a reach of 75 inches. ‘Bam Bam’ last weighed in at 266 lbs in his last fight against ‘Bon Gamin’. The Samoan fighter made his promotional debut against Rashad Coulter at UFC Fight Night 121. He knocked Coulter out with a flying knee in the first round. Tai Tuivasa has a UFC record of 8-4 and an overall MMA record of 14-4.
Sergei Pavlovich stands an inch taller than Tuivasa at 6’3″ (191 cm). However, the Russian fighter has a definitive nine-inch reach advantage over his opponent at 84 inches. Pavlovich last weighed in at 254.5 lbs in his last fight against Derrick Lewis at UFC 277.
The Russian has only one loss on his record in his debut against Alistair Overeem at UFC Fight Night 141, where he lost via knockout in the first round. He has a promotional record of 4-1 and an overall MMA record of 16-1.
Tai Tuivasa vs. Sergei Pavlovich: A potential heavyweight banger
To say that the heavyweight bout between Tai Tuivasa and Sergei Pavlovich will be an absolute banger is an understatement. Both fighters are knockout artists with a penchant for leaving it all out there in the octagon.
Both fighters like to stand in the pocket and trade punches and are known for their pressure-heavy styles.
Tuivasa has 14 knockouts in 18 fights and 12 first-round finishes. ‘Bam Bam’ has only fought to a decision twice in his MMA career. He has a striking accuracy of 50%, having landed 354 of 703 significant strikes in the UFC. He has a strike rate of 4.12 strikes per minute but a higher absorption rate of 4.24 strikes per minute.
Pavlovich has 13 wins by knockout, with all being first-round finishes. He has a striking accuracy of 52%, having landed 86 out of 166 significant strikes. He has a higher strike rate than Tuivasa at 6.83 strikes landed per minute and a strike absorption rate of 4.44 strikes absorbed per minute. Sergei Pavlovich is currently on a four-fight win streak going into the bout with ‘Bam Bam’.
Tai Tuivasa is ranked No.4 on the UFC heavyweight roster, while Sergei Pavlovich is the No.5-ranked UFC heavyweight.