Tafa vs Lane Prediction: Tafa to Win Big at Home

My Tafa vs Lane Prediction: Fireworks.

Justin Tafa and Austen Lane will run it back after their first encounter resulted in the only anticlimactic part of the UFC on ABC 5 card. Though the fight didn’t even last thirty seconds, we could tell that this one was ramping up to be fireworks. In that quick span of action, we saw that these guys were more than willing to slug it out until someone went down.

More than likely, these two will pick up where they left off. With the Australian crowd backing Justin Tafa, it’s hard to envision this guy losing. Lane did look good in the 29 seconds that he was fighting Justin, but that’s really not enough time to make any serious predictions. So, I’m looking at that fight and previous fight to determine who I’m going for in this bout.

UFC 293: Tafa vs Lane Prediction

Jun 24, 2023; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Austen Lane (red gloves) reacts after his fight against Justin Tafa (blue gloves) is ruled a no contest in their heavyweight bout during UFC Fight Night at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Yeazell-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA – Photo by Icon sport

Justin Tafa is the betting favorite and it’s hard to argue against it. He’s 6-0 with 6 knockout wins on his record. Bar the recent no contest against Lane, he’s riding a two-fight winning streak. Oh, and he’s not even thirty-years-old yet. Lane has all of the tools and attributes to upset the Australian card, but it’s looking unlikely at the moment.

Tafa vs Lane Prediction – Justin Tafa Preview

UFC 293 is stacked from bottom to top with Australian talent. Justin Tafa is one of the talents on the main card and he should represent home very well. Not a carbon-copy, but a fighter that is obviously influenced by Mark Hunt, we see Tafa with a very similar style; he wants that walk-off knockout and he’ll be looking for it until that final horn.

What Justin Tafa brings to the table is heavy hands and great kickboxing fundamentals. When this guy gets in the zone, he’s a tough guy to beat. He’s only been stopped once in his nine fights; when you look at the heavy-handed fighters he’s gone against, that’s very impressive. Additionally, he’s no stranger to the type of threat that Lane brings.

Tafa has adapted to being the shorter guys with less reach. Regardless, he finds his openings. With his striking acumen and fight IQ, he’s able to stay composed even when he’s fighting guys with attributes like Lane that tower over him and have a lot more reach. He should be able to weather the storm, find the chin and get his hand raised.

Tafa vs Lane Prediction – Austen Lane Preview

Austen Lane is one of the most athletic heavyweights on the roster that isn’t in the top five at the moment. This guy can crack with the hands, he can kick and he can submit the big boys. He was having a lot of success with his kicks in the first fight against Tafa, but he got a bit too comfortable playing the range game and lodged his finger in the Aussie’s eye.

Going into this fight, he’ll need to keep those hands up, the chin tucked, and make the most of his 6″ reach advantage. Those kicks worked well for him in the first fight; swap out the open hands with some jabs and that’s going to make this a hard fight for Justin. This is a very fun matchup and we should all be stoked that this fight was rebooked, especially on a card where it multiples the investment by a lot.

Justin Tafa vs Austen Lane Prediction: Justin Tafa Gets the Finish

To give an official Tafa vs Lane prediction, I’ve got to go with Australia’s own, Justin Tafa. The likelihood of Lane avoiding Tafa’s bombs for 15 minutes is unlikely, and I just can’t see Lane finishing Tafa. I could see myself being wrong about that, but that’s totally different. Not that it’s an attribute, but the Australian card might be the fuel that helps Tafa continue his finishing ways and make it 7 wins, 7 knockouts.

Of course, Lane is no slouch and really, he’s got the ability to win. Would it be a bummer? Yeah, seeing guys lose at home sucks. But, Lane is a great fighter and whether it’s this weekend or next year, he’s likely to be pretty high up in the ranks at heavyweight should he play his cards right.

Both of these fighters go out there and put on a show, so whether it’s Tafa or Lane getting their hands raised, this fight seems like a win for the viewers already. They’ve only shared the ring for 29-seconds and that was fantastic, let’s see what these big fellas do with a bit more time.