Newstalk ZB's D'Arcy Waldegrave and the NZ Herald's Bonnie Jansen get together to preview the weekend's sport.
Video / NZ Herald / Photosport
Justin Tafa’s rollercoaster career in the UFC has hit another down point.
Only a day out from the biggest fight of his career, against No 15-ranked Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC 298 in California, the Kiwi heavyweight was forced to withdraw due to a knee injury.
Though Tafa will be disappointed, it has provided his younger brother, Junior, the opportunity to become a legend in the eyes of UFC fans.
Junior, also a UFC heavyweight, has stepped in for his brother, signing his fight contract on Saturday morning (NZ time) a little more than an hour before getting on the scales to make the fight official. The Tafa brothers often corner each other, so Junior was on hand in Anaheim with Justin. The Daily Telegraph reports Justin suffered an injury to his right knee while training during the week, but had been hiding it in a bid to make it to the fight. Ironically, the injury happened while he was grappling with Junior.
But, after approval from Justin and the rest of the team to take the fight, Junior became the latest-yet late replacement for a UFC fight, getting the bout offer less than two hours before weighing in.
“I’m one of a kind. It’s the latest replacement they’ve ever seen,” Junior told the Daily Telegraph.
“That’s how I would like my training camps to be, 10 push-ups every month. I’m not born for training camps, I’m born to fight.”
Tafa tipped the scales at 112.9kg for what will be his seventh professional MMA bout, while de Lima weighed in at 118.6kg — both comfortably below the 120.6kg limit for a UFC heavyweight fight. De Lima has a vast experience advantage over Junior with 31 professional bouts to his name, and he brings good grappling and powerful punching to the cage.
But when it comes to power, Junior’s five wins — all by knockout — speak for themselves.
Win or lose, it’s a move that will win Junior plenty of fans.
The 27-year-old is also booked to fight Karl Williams in March. He has made two appearances in the UFC since being signed by the promotion, losing a decision on debut against Mohammed Usman before claiming a first-round KO over Parker Porter in his most recent appearance, in August.
Junior will be one of three fighters from Downunder 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 match-ups 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 and a good grappling game.
For Justin, it’s another chapter in what has so far been an eventful UFC career.
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.
Justin Tafa celebrates after knocking out Austen Lane at UFC 293 in Sydney in September. Photo / Photosport
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 had 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 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.
Sunday’s bout against Marcos Rogerio de Lima would have been his first opportunity to break into the UFC rankings.
UFC 298: Volkanovski v Topuria
Honda Center, Anaheim, USA. Sunday February 18.
Early prelims can be streamed via UFC Fight Pass from 12:30pm.
Prelims (featuring Junior Tafa) will be broadcast on ESPN and free-to-air on Sky Open from 2pm. They can also be streamed via UFC Fight Pass or Sky Sport Now.
Main card (featuring Alexander Volkanovski and Robert Whittaker) is available via pay-per-view on Sky Arena, Sky Sport Now and UFC Fight Pass from 4pm.
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
