Gigantic lightweight Gleison Tibau (22-7, 8-5 UFC) will look to put a damper on the UFC return of Rafaello "Tractor" Oliveira (14-3, 1-2 UFC) in a lightweight matchup at UFC 130. This bout will be the second of three fights that make up the Facebook portion of the card. The Facebook stream begins at 6:45 p.m. ET/3:45 p.m. PT.
How do these two stack up?
Tibau: 27 years old | 5'10" | 72" reach
Oliveira: 29 years old | 5'8" | 71.5" reach
What have these two done lately?
Tibau: W - Kurt Pellegrino (SD) | L - Jim Miller (UD) | W - Caol Uno (TKO)
Oliveira: W - Ryan Bixler (TKO) | W - Bendy Casimir (UD) | W - Kevin Roddy (SUB)
How did these two get here?
Gleison Tibau made his UFC debut way back in late 2006, where he was TKO'd by current Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz at welterweight. He dropped to lightweight after that fight, where he's been ever since. He's had an up-and-down career in the UFC, never putting together more than three wins in a row, yet only losing two in a row once in his tenure. He has won 5 of his last 7, most recently picking up a split-decision win over Kurt Pellegrino at UFC 128.
This is Oliveira's second go-around with the UFC. He was cut last year after a 1-2 stint in the organization, with decision losses to Nik Lentz and Andre Winner sandwiching a decision win over John Gunderson. Since his release he has picked up four straight wins, which earned him another chance on the big state as a late replacement for Bart Palaszewski.
Why should you care?
The resurgent Tibau could be on his way back into contention with a win, while Oliveira could make somewhat of a name for himself with a win over such a steady UFC vet.
More UFC 130 Stories from Bloody Elbow:
There is 1 Comment. Load Now.
Shortcuts to mastering the comment thread. Use wisely.
C - Next Comment
X - Mark as Read
R - Reply
Z - Mark Read & Next
Shift + C - Previous
Shift + A - Mark All Read
Comment Settings
Live comment alert: Hide it!
Comments for this post are closed.