Robelis Despaigne earns split decision over Tai Tuivasa at UFC 331

Tuivasa's eight straight losses since 2022 are the most in UFC history, tied with Tony Ferguson's inglorious mark.

Robelis Despaigne and Tai Tuivasa at UFC 331 | Chris Unger, Zuffa LLC Robelis Despaigne and Tai Tuivasa gave fans and fighters something to talk about at UFC 331, that’s for sure. The heavyweights threw down in a back-and-forth contest that saw huge punches being thrown, both men unexpectedly showing off their grappling game, and just enough stamina for it to go the distance with Despaigne eking out a split decision win. Technique frequently went out the window, but that didn’t seem to matter much to the Los Angeles crowd, who were mostly receptive to the sloppy action. It was the first decision win ever for Despaigne, whose victories have all come by way of first-round knockout. This was the Olympic bronze medalist’s return to the UFC following a successful run with Karate Combat and a one-off appearance at the inaugural MVP MMA show. Tuivasa lost his eighth straight fight, tying Tony Ferguson’s dubious record for the most consecutive losses in UFC history. Check out what fighters had to say about the memorable fight on social media. UFC 1 all over again! — Alan Jouban (@AlanJouban) September 20, 2026 Rematch in RAF. — Alan Jouban (@AlanJouban) September 20, 2026 Ah… they can say what they want about @bambamtuivasa losing streak he is still a tough night out. 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 Let’s Go!! This fight is fun! — Rashad Evans (@SugaRashadEvans) September 20, 2026 Please never cut tuivasa 😭🔥🔥 — keitaplusser (@keita_losene) September 20, 2026 💔 — Mairon "The Legend" Santos (@Maironsantoss) September 20, 2026 Tuivasa didn’t get the win . But he performed better than most thought ! #UFC331 — Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) September 20, 2026 COM’MON @bambamtuivasa LEZZZZ F@CKING GOOO!!! — Josh Thomson (@THEREALPUNK) September 20, 2026

Robelis Despaigne and Tai Tuivasa put on quite the show at UFC 331

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 19:(Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC) It was far from pretty but Robelis Despaigne returned to the octagon at UFC 331 and pulled off a split decision win to beat Tai Tuivasa on the preliminary card. The giant Cuban had fought, lost and was released from the UFC in the past but a stunning win over former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos got him invited back to the big show on Saturday. Despaigne didn’t exactly show marked improvements but he was able to score numerous takedowns and blast Tuivasa with some hard shots whenever the heavyweights decided to throw down. When it was over, the judges scored the fight 29-28 twice for Despaigne with the third official going 29-28 for Tuivasa, but that was still enough for the Cuban to get the win. Like usual, Despaigne largely depended on his power and size to get the job done during the 15-minute fight. Despaigne scored several takedowns and then use his sheer size to overwhelm Tuivada on the canvas. Despaigne did manage to land some hard shots on the ground and Tuivasa was left bleeding from the damage done. In the end, Despaigne got the nod by split decision as he moves to 7-2 in his career while Tuivasa falls to 14-11 including his current eight fight losing streak in the UFC.

It wasn’t pretty but Robelis Despaigne returned to the UFC with a win

Tai Tuivasa and Tony Ferguson now share the same UFC record.