Justin Tafa has pulled out of his UFC Perth bout due to illness, in another major blow for the promotion.
Tafa was scheduled to face Briton Louie Sutherland in a fan-favourite heavyweight bout high up on the bill of the Australian Fight Night card.
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Tafa, right, has had four cancelled fights since he made a successful UFC debut in September 2023Credit: Getty
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He was booked to fight former LFL heavyweight champion Louie Sutherland, who was set to make his UFC debutCredit: Getty
However, having reportedly been unable to make weight, and sent to the hospital, the fight has now been cancelled.
“Due to illness, Justin Tafa has been removed from his heavyweight bout with Sutherland. As a result, this bout has been cancelled,” a statement from the UFC read.
At one point, UFC Perth was set to break the record for the most bouts on a card in the organisation’s history.
But it has now been cut to 12 fights in a matter of weeks following numerous illnesses and injuries.
Tafa joins his brother, Junior Tafa, as one of the fighters to have withdrawn from the Australian card.
Junior was meant to lock horns with Ibo Aslan at light heavyweight, but his injury meant the fight between Jimmy Crute and Ivan Erslan in the same division was promoted to co-main event status.
Tafa’s illness comes less than 24 hours after Welshman Oban Elliott was forced to pull out from UFC Perth due to severe flu.
Sutherland, who told talkSPORT.com this week how excited he was to contest the biggest fight of his career, has been left ‘gutted’ following the news of Tafa’s withdrawal.
Louie Sutherland ‘gutted’ after cancelled UFC Perth fight
“I’ve got some bad news,” Sutherland explained on Instagram
“Some of you might have already heard my opponent has had to pull out of the fight.
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Sutherland, who boasts a professional MMA record of 10-3, said Tafa was overweight and sent to the hospital after failing to shed the extra pounds needed to make the 265lbs limitCredit: Getty
“This morning, on weigh-in day, he couldn’t make the weight. I heard he was a few pounds over, and he had to go to the hospital.
“So the fight is off, hopefully the UFC get me out sharpish. I was ready to put on a show for you guys, but unfortunately, that’s just the way the cookie crumbles.
“I’m f***ing gutted but it is what it is, I turnt up professional, ready to go and ready to smash really, but I just thought I’d let you know myself.”
UFC responds to ‘poor ticket sales’ for Perth event
Tafa’s withdrawal from UFC Perth is just another one of the many problems for the promotion leading up to fight night.
UFC Fight Night 260 is reportedly struggling with ticket sales for the event, with several facing a price reduction to fill the seats at RAC Arena.
UFC executive Dave Shaw was asked during Friday’s pre-fight press conference if he had concerns about the matter.
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Ulberg and Reyes lock horns at light heavyweight in the main event of UFC PerthCredit: Getty
“From the very beginning, we’ve taken the long run,” he responded.
“We’re playing a long game with Australia. We mentioned being first here in 2010 with UFC 110.
“We opened up the office, playing the long game in 2014 when the UFC Australia office in Sydney was opened, and in 2015, we held the biggest event in UFC history with Ronda [Rousey] and Holly [Holm] in Melbourne…
“We will continue to take the long run in Australia.”
UFC Perth is headlined by a light heavyweight title eliminator between Carlos Ulberg and Dominick Reyes.
The event is scheduled to begin at 12 am UK time (7 am local time) on TNT Sports, with the main card set to kick off at 3 am (10 am local time) on Sunday morning.