Signed to the promotion in 2019 with just three professional MMA bouts on his record, the Kiwi heavyweight was thrust into the spotlight immediately, opening up the main card of a pay-per-view headlined by middleweight Israel Adesanya’s successful bid to dethrone Robert Whittaker, at an event that drew the largest crowd in the UFC’s history.
He had success early, but things can go wrong quickly in MMA, and Tafa was on the wrong end of a brutal knockout.
He bounced back with a knockout win in his next appearance, but back-to-back decision losses saw him begin his UFC career 1-3. Fighters have been cut after similar starts, but Tafa remained on the roster.
In his next fight, he became the first heavyweight in UFC history to weigh in above the 266lbs (120.6kg) limit. But that fight was the start of an impressive run for Tafa, who is now unbeaten in his past four appearances, with three first-round knockouts and one no-contest.
On Sunday, Tafa’s UFC career could hit its highest peak yet when he meets Brazil’s Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC 298 in California. De Lima is a vastly more experienced campaigner, with 31 professional bouts and 21 wins, and brings heavy hands as well as a solid grappling base to mix his attacks well.
Justin Tafa celebrates after knocking out Austen Lane at UFC 293 in Sydney last September. Photo / Photosport
The 38-year-old is currently the No 15-ranked heavyweight in the UFC, and a win for Queensland-based Tafa would see him make a strong case to replace his Brazilian counterpart among the world’s elite.
“That’s what I’m more excited about,” Tafa said during a press conference in Sydney. “I think I fare well with all these guys in the top 15. I’ve been doing all this ground work so I better put it to use. I think this guy will try to take me down and I’ll probably knock him out.”
“He’s experienced and whatnot, but I’ve done very hard rounds and a lot of hard rounds with very hard strikers in the past and in this camp.
“This guy likes to throw down, but I don’t know. We’ll see. My coaches are like stick and move, find an opening, but my heart’s telling me to go to war and put on a good show.”
Tafa will be one of three fighters from Down Under on the California card. Kiwi-born middleweight Whittaker will take on Paulo Costa in the co-main event, and Australian Alexander Volkanovski will put his featherweight title on the line against surging young Spaniard Ilia Topuria in the main event.
The main event is one of the most anticipated matchups of the year so far. Volkanovski has staked his claim to the title of greatest of all time while Topuria is a hungry young fighter yet to taste defeat and has big power in his hands as well as a good grappling game.
For Tafa, the positives of being on the same card – albeit on the prelims - are two-fold. It’s an opportunity to further make his name in the world of the UFC, but it’s also a chance to set the tone for the rest of the night.
“I just come in to entertain, and I think that’s why they included me on this card,” Tafa said.
“They needed someone to set the fireworks off early. That’s my job and I’m going to try to do my best.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
