With the confirmation of this month’s UFC 317 placement and bout order, fans have lambasted promotional CEO Dana White for placing the faltering Justin Tafa in a main card setting.
Tafa, who returns at the end of the month, finds himself on the high-profile International Fight Week card. Set to take on Brazilian prospect, Jhonata Diniz, Tafa would be keen to end the three-fight losing streak.
Tafa will join a litany of talent including Ilia Topuria, Charles Oliveira, Alexandre Pantoja, and Kai Kara-France. Undoubtedly, the New Zealander will find himself amidst some of the sport’s biggest names.
Fans pointed out that a would-be flyweight pairing, Brandon Royval and Manel Kape, was shifted in favor of Tafa. Even with Kape out, Royval will now fight recent UFC 316 winner Joshua Van. That, arguably, is an equally important pairing.
Opening the main card against Diniz, Tafa comes before the trio of stalwarts, Beneil Dariush, Renato Moicano, and ex-title challenger Paulo Costa, too.
But as far as fans are concerned, it’s inconceivable that Tafa has once more snuck into a main card. All this despite his disappointing Octagon tenure. Some have even gone as far as to suggest the New Zealander must have some dirt on White.
“Bro got some dirt on Dana because ain’t no way, bro,” read a Reddit post.
Often branded as regen of ex-UFC star Mark Hunt, given White’s antitrust lawsuit beef with him, another claimed Tafa’s presence is to spite the Pride FC alum. “Dana just hates Hunt so much, he loves seeing his replicas beaten.”
A third user claimed that piling on the Tafa train is not going to translate into pay-per-view buys. “There is not a single person on the planet who will buy a ppv because of Tafa,” they wrote.
But all of this discourse should not be news to White. The UFC CEO is already facing criticism over the display of UFC talent recently.
Dana White blasted for lacklustre cards
Hosting a pair of title fights on their International Fight Week card, granted, UFC 317 — on paper, looks exciting to say the least. But fans and pundits alike have voiced their concern over the recent string of more than questionable cards on offer.
Hosting many an event at their second home at the UFC Apex facility, a host of subpar cards have been broadcast each weekend over the last 18 months.
Choosing to host events — in their proverbial backyard, rather than taking to the road as in years gone by — the UFC ‘stacked’ their Fight Night events with a host of questionable talents. And beyond some decently-ranked contenders, many cards — even flagship events have been littered with Contender Series products and debuting combatants.
