After their initial meeting earlier this year ended in a No Contest due to an accidental eye poke that left Justin Tafa unable to continue, he and rival Austen Lane ran it back at Saturday’s UFC 293 in Sydney, Australia.
That first match-up had come in Florida, on Lane’s home turf, so it was rather fitting for the rematch to arrive in Sydney, where fans would be firmly in “Bad Man” Tafa’s corner.
Unbelievably, Lane landed both a low blow and an eye poke in the opening seconds of the fight, leading to a brief break in the action. Instantly, the concern was another fight being lost to a No Contest, but luckily, the damage was negligible. With Tafa none the worse for the wear, things got back underway, and Tafa immediately connected. Lane ate that shot, but he couldn’t handle a second one moments later. Tafa connected and dropped Lane, who laid on his back, dazed. The left hand that put Lane down followed up with blow after blow, until the ref came in to wave things off.
While their first fight had lasted just 29 seconds, this one at least eclipsed the one minute mark, though just barely.
Official Result: Justin Tafa def. Austen Lane by TKO (strikes), Round 1, 1:22
