MMA fans in shock as heavyweight fighter immediately taps out after opening bell

A heavyweight MMA bout at Poland’s Babilon MMA 54 ended in about as bizarre a fashion as any combat sports fan has ever seen.

Taking place on the same day as UFC Fight Night Perth, Babilon MMA 54 went down at Hala Widowiskowo – Sportowa in Grudziadz, Poland and featured a total of seven professional MMA bouts after the night kicked off with an amateur matchup.

One of the scheduled bouts saw Marcin Szołtysik enter the cage for his professional MMA debut against five-fight veteran Jacek Kujtowski, but the bout ended as soon as it began when Szołtysik immediately tapped the canvas to concede defeat.

Marcin Szołtysik Taps Out Of Pro MMA Debut

Competing in the sixth fight at Babilon MMA 54 before the light heavyweight co-main event between Przemyslaw Mysiala and Kleber Silva, Szołtysik knelt down and tapped several times as soon as the bell sounded to signal the start of the heavyweight bout (clip courtesy of @Matysek88).

just saw that and couldn't believe it. Was there an explanation?
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) September 27, 2025

Kujtowski initially walked away in confusion before he came towards his opponent with an upraised fist that prompted another tap from Szołtysik, and even the referee appeared unsure about how to proceed until he formally waved the fight off.

The two heavyweights shared a conversation following the fight, but as of yet Babilon MMA hasn’t offered any clarification on what made Szołtysik tap as soon as the fight started.

MMA Fans Left Confused By Ending To Heavyweight Bout

As noted by @Matysek88, this wasn’t the first time that one of Szołtysik’s fights has produced an ending that combat sports fans will likely need to watch multiple times.

Szołtysik was brutally stopped by Jakub Ozga just 28 seconds into a bareknuckle MMA bout at Wotore 4, and that’s currently the only recorded fight on his record other than his recent outing against Kujtowski. He was scheduled to meet Ariel Wittek at The Warriors MMA in January, but that fight was cancelled.

It remains to be seen what Szołtysik or Babilon MMA will have to say on what occurred at Babilon MMA 54, but it seems unlikely the fight will go down as an official win for Kujtowski. The Polish heavyweight made his pro MMA debut in 2021 and has also gone 1-1 in kickboxing to go along with his 3-2 record in MMA.

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