Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight hitters Tai Tuivasa vs. Tallison Teixeira will go to war this weekend (Sat., Jan. 31, 2026) inside Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia, for UFC 325.
Times have been extraordinarily tough for Tuivasa, who has lost five straight fights in consistently violent fashion. Before that awful stretch, Tuivasa was on a big win streak himself and had advanced into the elite ranks, but the recent losses have forced us to consider that time may already be up for the 32-year-old
“Bam Bam.” One thing is certain: he badly needs a win here.
Conversely. the jury is still out on Teixeira. The primary draw of the big Brazilian is his height (6’8”) and history of knockouts on the regional scene. In the Octagon, however, Teixeira’s total fight time between one victory and one less is a mere 70 seconds. There are still lots of questions about “Xicao,” who could develop into a contender or be off the roster in six months.
Let’s take a closer look at the betting odds and strategic keys for each athlete:
Tuivasa vs. Teixeira Betting Odds
- Tai Tuivasa victory: +250
- Tai Tuivasa via TKO/KO/DQ: TBD
- Tai Tuivasa via submission: TBD
- Tai Tuivasa via decision: TBD
- Tallison Teixeira victory: -340
- Tallison Teixeira via TKO/KO/DQ: TBD
- Tallison Teixeira via submission: TBD
- Tallison Teixeira via decision: TBD
- Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook
How Tuivasa Wins
Tuivasa is the definition of a kill-or-be-killed slugger. He’s a bit sharper of a boxer than many of his peers and has a nice low kick, but at the end of the day, Tuivasa is here to trade shots until somebody falls down.
What’s the key when facing an opponent with a massive height and reach advantage? Obviously, Tuivasa has to get on the inside and fortunately he has a ton of practice doing so. Plus, Teixeira isn’t really a dedicated range striker like Alexander Volkov. He blasts big kicks, certainly, but he’s much more willing to exchange from closer quarters once the fight moves there.
Tuivasa isn’t one for a complicated game plan, so let’s keep this simple. He has to pressure the kicker as well as kick with him. Tuivasa may not be able to match Teixeira’s range, but answering kicks with low kicks and generally trying to have an output from the kicking distance will help in the long run. Ideally, Tuivasa will look to side-step, block, or pass by a big Teixeira kick and then step in with punches while Teixeira is off-balance.
Another real key will be avoiding the clinch while attacking. Teixeira is dangerous with elbows and knees from close quarters, so Tuivasa has to maintain his combinations and boxing form without crashing into the bigger man. If he can stay compact with his punches and get Teixeira reaching for the clinch when it isn’t there, that’s how knockouts happen.
How Teixeira Wins
Teixeira, age 26, is one of the youngest prospects on the roster. Unfortunately, he’s being rushed into big name fights before being given a chance to hone his skills on the undercard, a high-risk gamble that rarely works out for an athlete’s development. Regardless, Teixeira uses his size advantage well with punishing kicks and nasty clinch offense.
How’s his defense? Cardio? Defensive wrestling? Who knows!
Fortunately, only the first question is likely to be tested by Tuivasa, and there’s an answer built into Teixeira’s offense. If Teixeira dedicates himself to hard push kicks and chopping low kicks, he should be able to avoid the pocket with just a modicum of footwork. When we’re talking about a man who weighs 260 pounds, it doesn’t take many of those connections to quickly wear down the opponent and make their punches more obvious.
Otherwise, Teixeira has to keep his hands hand in the pocket to avoid the big overhands and left hooks. Ideally, he’ll get his forearms inside those wide swings, allowing him to then grab the head and start blasting knees.
Tuivasa vs. Teixeira Prediction
I’ll confess that I don’t understand the odds here. Teixeira ran through pretty mediocre opposition on the regional scene, so our only evidence that he’s any good is the Justin Tafa destruction — and the Tafa brothers are bad! Teixeira has the advantages of size and youth, yet those edges feel evened by Tuivasa’s wealth of experience against top Heavyweight sluggers.
This feels like a pick ‘em to me between two heavy hitters.
Frankly, if Tuivasa does lose here, it’s clearly the worst defeat on his entire resume. Therefore, if we assume the brawler isn’t completely shot, he should still be able to turn away a barely ranked opponent or two.
