Marco Tulio brought the violence in his UFC debut.
At UFC Fight Night 249 on Saturday, Tulio (13-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) brutalized Ihor Potieria (21-8 MMA, 2-6 UFC) with an elongated swarm of punches before the stoppage came at 3:04 of Round 1.
After a low blow from Tulio halted the action, Potieria deemed himself able to continue – but that status wouldn’t last long. Tulio dropped Potieria with a right hand shortly thereafter.
Potieria did his best to survive but failed in his attempt. Big swarming punches damaged the scrambling Ukrainian as referee Mark Smith eventually dove in to stop the fight.
The onslaught from Tulio was too much 😤 #UFCVegas101 pic.twitter.com/oBOcicAZIj
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 11, 2025
Tulio, 30, won his official debut after two victories on Dana White’s Contender Series. Saturday’s victory was his ninth in a row.
Potieria, 28, had his rough UFC run continue with his third straight loss. In eight appearances, Potieria has been finished five times.
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 249 results include:
- Marco Tulio def. Ihor Potieria via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:04
- Thiago Moises def. Trey Ogden via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jacobe Smith def. Preston Parsons via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:13
- Ernesta Kareckaite def. Nicolle Caliari via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Bruno Lopes def. Magomed Gadzhiyasulov via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Fatima Kline def. Viktoriia Dudakova via TKO (elbows) – Round 2, 4:27
- Nurullo Aliev def. Joe Solecki via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 249.
