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Robelis Despaigne is the latest in a long line of terrifying heavyweight knockout artists. Undefeated and having finished everyone he's ever faced, the Cuban phenom has drawn the attention of Junior Tafa, who took to Instagram to urge the UFC to book him in a bout with Despaigne in Australia.
The two men are fresh off fights themselves. Tafa recently competed at UFC 298, where he stepped in on short-notice on behalf of his brother, Justin Tafa, who withdrew from the card due to injury. In his brother's place, he faced Marcos Rogério de Lima, only to be TKO'd in round two.
"@UFC @mickmaynard2 Bring him down under"
Meanwhile, Despaigne had a highly successful outing at UFC 299, where he needed just 18 seconds to TKO Josh Parisian. If the UFC obliges, a matchup between Despaigne and Tafa would be a sensible choice. The Cuban power-puncher is full of potential, and Tafa is a somewhat recognizable name.
Furthermore, the Australian is coming off a knockout loss. Given that his ceiling appears far lower than Despaigne's, the UFC could feed Tafa to him with the hope that a name like Tafa on his record would draw in more fans. However, Despaigne has already drawn plenty of attention.
First, he is one of the few Cuban fighters in the UFC, following in the footsteps of Yoel Romero as his division's resident annihilator. Furthermore, he represented Cuba at the Olympics. While Romero won silver in freestyle wrestling, Despaigne won bronze in Taekwondo.
Robelis Despaigne is a giant among giants
The UFC heavyweight division is home to men of gigantic stature, but none match the physical proportions of Robelis Despaigne. At six feet and seven inches tall, he is as tall as any heavyweight on the roster and not far from the tallest to have ever competed in the promotion. Second, he has the longest reach in UFC history.
For years, Jon Jones boasted the greatest wingspan in the promotion, tied with Stefan Struve at 84.5 inches. However, the Cuban Olympian dwarfs those dimensions, as his reach is a whopping 87 inches long. And with his height, he could potentially craft himself into an outfighting nightmare for future foes.
