Athletes
Tai Tuivasa: ‘Nothing Comes Easy’
After Nearly 18 Months Away From Competition, Australia’s Tai Tuivasa Is Chomping At The Bit To Deliver A Memorable Performance For His Hometown Fans At UFC 325
Tai Tuivasa knew getting back in the gym wasn’t going to feel great. The longtime heavyweight contender needed a break after suffering a decision loss to Jairzinho Rozenstruik in August 2024—his fifth defeat in a row—and gave himself exactly that. In his own words, Tuivasa “put his feet up” for about a year-and-a-half, focusing on other ventures that had nothing to do with mixed martial arts. That time away afforded him a chance to catch his breath, and as he makes his return to competition about 18 months later, Tuivasa feels like “Bam Bam” again.
“I was going through a wall the first month of training, but I feel good now,” Tuivasa told UFC.com. “I knew it was going to be hard. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. I was putting my feet up in my time off, so I knew it was going to be hard. Nothing comes easy.”
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MMA isn’t a forgiving sport, whether you’re on the highest of highs or a tough run of form. A small dip in motivation is all it takes for an athlete to lose their edge, and while Tuivasa’s love of fighting never faded, everything around the sport can grind down even the most passionate, particularly after going years without getting one’s hand raised.
Tai Tuivasa | Top Finishes
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Tai Tuivasa | Top Finishes
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While a lot is made of Tuivasa’s skid, which dates back to a back-and-forth slugfest with Ciryl Gane at UFC’s first event in Paris, what preceded the downward streak is brushed off. The Sydneysider went into that bout with Gane carrying a 5-fight knockout streak, punctuated with a devastating finish of UFC knockout king Derrick Lewis in Houston.
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Five fights and more than three years since then, Tuivasa is eager to return to the winner’s circle and believes the work he did out in Dubai with Tripl3 MMA has him back in prime form.
“I feel like I miss it,” he said. “I feel like I’m ready to get back in there. I haven’t felt like that in a while, so I’m pumped.”
Standing in his way of a celebratory shoey is the 6-foot-8 Tallison Teixeira. The Brazilian joined the roster as an undefeated prospect after scoring a knockout win on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2024. From there, he took out Justin Tafa and was shuttled into a main event assignment against Lewis in Nashville. Lewis knocked Teixeira out in the first round, but the 26-year-old remains a highly touted prospect in the division.
Tuivasa is complimentary of his opponent, but as someone who doesn’t traditionally discuss how he plans to get his hands on his opponent, Tuivasa’s praise ends with “looking forward to getting in there with him.”
MORE UFC 325: Full Fight Card Preview | Main Event Breakdown | Volkanovski Interview | Hooker Returns | Fiziev Interview | Tuivasa Interview | BSD Ascends
The Sydney crowd is eager to see “Bam Bam” get his hand raised as well, something that hasn’t happened since Tuivasa’s UFC debut in November 2017 when he knocked Rashad Coulter out in the first round via flying knee. Tuivasa only fought once more in Sydney since then, when Alexander Volkov submitted him in September 2023. Overall, Tuivasa is 2-4 on home soil, but past results have nothing to do with his own expectations for his bout at UFC 325.
“I love coming home,” Tuivasa said. “I love performing in front of my people, and my people deserve a big win on the weekend, and so do I, so that’s what I’m going for.”
Don’t anticipate a long stretch between appearances either. Tuivasa sounds motivated and ready to get back into the wide-open mix that is the heavyweight division. It wasn’t long ago that Tuivasa reversed his 3-fight skid with that 5-fight knockout streak.
In the heavyweight division, it only takes one.
“My plan is to win this weekend, put my hand up and get back in there as soon as we can and work my way back up,” Tuivasa said. “I’ve been on a bit of a s*** trot, so get the job done this weekend, and we’ll go from there.”
UFC 325: Volkanovski vs Lopes 2 took place live from Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia on January 31, 2026. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!