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Brett Okamoto
multiple authors
Nearly 10 years after his professional MMA debut, the heavyweight Tyrell Fortune He finally got his first UFC win – and not without some controversy.
Fortune (18-3) def. marcin tybura (27-10) by unanimous decision via judges’ scores of 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 at UFC Fight Night in Seattle on Saturday. But confusion arose when UFC cage announcer Bruce Buffer initially read the score in Tybura’s favor.
Fortune left the Octagon and was heading back toward the tunnel when UFC officials caught the error and called him back to the arena, where he was declared the winner.
“I was pretty upset with myself,” said Fortune, who is from North-West. “I felt I didn’t do enough. I was just upset. With two weeks’ notice, I think I did a good job, but I also need to come up with a better performance next time.”
The former NCAA Division II national champion wrestler has come a long way to this point, including a near-death incident during his amateur wrestling career in 2012 in which he was declared dead after suffering health complications during a weight cut. He made a full medical recovery.
The 35-year-old was considered a top prospect early in his career. He fought in Bellator MMA from 2016 to 2023 and made two appearances in the PFL’s now-defunct regular season format in 2024.
