SUMMARY
- Justin Tafa has to step out of the fight at UFC 298 due to an injury.
- Junior Tafa had to step in on short notice for the fight at UFC 298.
UFC 298 is barely a sleep away, and fans have already seen some drama from the weigh-ins. For the most part, there is a lot of hype surrounding the event. However, recent events have made the card even more interesting, and for all the right reasons.
For those unaware, heavyweights Justin Tafa and Marcos Rogerio de Lima were meant to fight in the prelims of UFC 298. However, an unfortunate last-minute injury to the Australian forced the promotion to find a replacement. Thankfully, they did not need to look too far, as Justin’s younger brother Junior threw his name in the hat.
Justin Tafa OUT ❌@JuniorTafa IN 🟢
Justin Tafa has been removed from #UFC298 due to an injury. His brother, Junior, is stepping in on ONE DAYS NOTICE‼️ pic.twitter.com/os3TFKYNiV
— UFC (@ufc) February 16, 2024
It was a remarkable turn of events, to say the least, with a fighter stepping in on one day’s notice to fight. With that said, Junior Tafa was meant to take on Karl Williams on March 23 and made the trip with his brother. Currently, it is unknown whether that fight will be postponed or not. Considering the way things have developed, the UFC can be glad that they have another Tafa waiting in the wings.
Notably, the sibling switcheroo was announced just prior to the official weigh-ins on Friday. As such, ‘The Juggernaut’ quickly signed on the dotted line and weighed in just five minutes before the window closed. Additionally, Rogerio de Lima did not take any liberties and promptly accepted the new opponent offered to him. With that said, let’s take a look at other instances where a fighter has stepped in on such short notice.
Last-minute step-ins in UFC history
For the most part, the list is not a big one, owing to it being a rather rare occurrence. Whilst fighters have been known to step in on short notice for almost every event, this one consists of those who stepped in on one day’s notice. Thus, whilst Alexander Volkanovski and Kamaru Usman stepped in on short notice for UFC 294, they cannot be included in this list.
Similarly, we have a host of other fighters who have stepped on the scales after a less-than-ideal camp. With that said, let us start things off with some honorable mentions. Keep in mind that all of these fighters stepped in on more than 24-hour notice. As such, the list includes Anderson Silva, who stepped in against Daniel Cormier at UFC 200 on a 48-hour notice. Similarly, Anthony Perosh also stepped in to take on Mirko Cro Cop on 48-hour notice.
Additionally, we have Ilir Latifi who stepped in against Gegard Mousasi in 2013 on four days’ notice. Lastly, another mention can be given to Fred Ettish who replaced Freek Hamaker, against Johnny Rhodes at the UFC 2 tournament in 1994. Although it was arguably the very definition of a last-minute with the fighter getting 15-20 minutes to prepare, the landscape of the sport was entirely different at the time.
1. Charlie Brenneman vs Rick Story (UFC on Versus)
Starting things off, we have the very interesting case of Charlie Brenneman. Notably, the Pennsylvania-born Spanish teacher turned MMA fighter had one of the biggest last-minute step-in stories in UFC history. Owing to UFC middleweight contender Nate Marquardt failing his pre-fight medical requirements, Brenneman was thrown in against Rick Story instead.
Notably, ‘The Spaniard’ was made aware of this change 15 minutes before the weigh-ins. Despite being heavily counted out against Story by fans, experts, and analysts, he would go on to write a fairytale story by beating his opponent on the night. Although Rick was a Muay Thai and Jiu-Jitsu specialist, Charlie’s wrestling was enough to negate whatever was thrown his way. Thus, the replacement ran away with a surprising unanimous decision win.
2. Joe Soto vs. TJ Dillashaw (UFC 177)
Up next, we have one of the wildest last-minute replacement stories in UFC history. Owing to a spectacular finish against Renan Barao, TJ Dillashaw managed to capture the bantamweight title at UFC 173. Thereafter, it was announced that Barao would be getting his rematch at UFC 177. As such, everything looked to be on course until the Brazilian former champ slipped and knocked himself out in the bath.
Thus, the UFC was forced to take desperate measures and ended up putting in Joe Soto against Dillashaw. For the most part, Soto was originally meant to make his promotional debut at the event. Instead, he was put in against the newly-crowned champion for his debut, on just one day’s notice. Although he went on to lose by way of KO/TKO in Round 5, he set an excellent example for himself regardless.
3. Al Iaquinta vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov (UFC 223)
Possibly one of the most talked-about last-minute shuffles in all of UFC history, we have Al Iaquinta fighting Khabiib Nurmagomedov. Initially, UFC 23 was meant to be headlined by The Eagle and Tony Ferguson. One of the most cursed matchups in UFC history, the fight fell apart numerous times over the years. When it seemed like everything had fallen into place, Tony tripped and fell, injuring his knee less than a week out from UFC 223.
Thus, the promotion turned to Max Holloway, who agreed to step in and fight on six days’ notice. However, medical experts and nutritionists deemed the sudden weight cut too detrimental to Holloway’s health. As a result, the New York State Athletic Commission (NYSAC) pulled him from the fight. Then, as a last resort, Al Iaquinta was brought in on 24-hour notice. Unfortunately, he was not able to spoil Khabib’s crowing moment on the night.
4. Tony Ferguson, Kevin Holland, and Li Jingliang at UFC 279
Lastly, we have one of the biggest and messiest mix-ups in UFC history. Originally, UFC 279 was meant to be headlined by Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev. However, due to a massive and unforgivable weight miss, Chimaev was pulled from the main event. As such, the UFC completely shuffled the main card, having Tony Ferguson fight Diaz instead. Thus, this meant that other fights were also switched up for the same reason.
Eventually, it was Kevin Holland who ended up fighting Khamzat Chimaev, and Li Jingliang was put in against Daniel Rodriguez. As you may have guessed already, none of the fighters managed to win the fights against their new opponents. With it being an absolute mess at the eleventh hour, Khamzat has since stated that he was intentionally asked to miss weight.
One of the biggest conspiracies in modern UFC history, no one has truly managed to understand what the UFC was intending to cook up with this one. Whilst some suggested that the UFC wanted Nate Diaz to leave on a loss and threw him in against Chimaev, others felt that they did not want to sever their ties with a bonafide superstar, who could potentially return for a super fight in the future.