Justin Tafa details hardships of injuries during long layoff before UFC 284

PERTH, Australia – Things weren’t easy for Justin Tafa leading into his UFC 284 home fight.

The 28-year-old Australian heavyweight snapped a two-fight skid with a brilliant head kick knockout of Harry Hunsucker in December 2021. But he couldn’t get any momentum going in 2022 thanks to injuries.

Tafa had to pull out of an April 2022 fight against Jake Collier, then one with Don’Tale Mayes three months later. Saturday, Tafa (5-3 MMA, 2-3 UFC) finally returns for the first time in 14 months when he takes on Parker Porter (13-7 MMA, 3-2 UFC) on the main card.

Ahead of his return, Tafa talked about the hardships he had to endure to get back in the cage. Check out Tafa’s full media day interview in the video above.

UFC 284 takes place Saturday at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 284.