Glory kickboxing star set to make his promotional debut at UFC 284

An Australian Glory Kickboxing star has reportedly signed on with the UFC and will make his debut at UFC 284.

Junior Tafa is a 26-year-old mixed martial artist who has plied his trade in kickboxing so far. He is set to make his promotional debut in his home country of Australia. Tafa will face another debutante, Austen Lane, on February 11th.

Al Zullino spotted the fight being scheduled on ESPN's website and tweeted:

"According to the ESPN website, Junior Tafa (4-0) has been signed by the UFC and he has a fight scheduled against Contender Series alum Austen Lane (12-3) on February 11, in Perth, Australia. #UFC284"

Junior Tafa currently holds a record of 4-0 in mixed martial arts and has fought across four different promotions namely Beatdown Promotions, Hex Fight Series, Brave CF, and RIZIN. Each of his four wins has come via a knockout finish and he has shown an impressive striking ability that does justice to his Muay Thai and kickboxing background.

Austen Lane is a former Dana White's Contender Series competitor and graduated with a contract after beating Richard Jacobi in round one via TKO. The two will face off in a heavyweight bout. They will be keen to impress on debut and warrant a spot on the roster.

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Curtis Blaydes reacts to Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane title matchup for UFC 285

Jon Jones will make his much-anticipated return to the octagon against Ciryl Gane for the heavyweight title. The former light heavyweight champion will make his heavyweight debut and has been fast-tracked to a title shot, as understood by Curtis Blaydes.

Blaydes, who is No.4-ranked in the heavyweight contenders' rankings, took to Instagram to vent his frustrations. He explained that he understands why No.1-ranked contender Gane is in a title fight with a legendary fighter like Jones. But he added that he also hoped that his next fight will help put him in contention for the title for the very same reason:

"Obviously I’ve seen the news, Gane is getting another title shot vs Jones. Most likely I’ll be getting the Pavolich [Pavlovich], who just beat Tuivasa. That’s cool with me, I get why Gane got the shot and it wasn’t based off meritocracy and that’s not a news flash, the UFC is always gonna [look] to match make based off who puts the most a***s in the stands and eyes on the fight. I hope I’ll only need one more win to prove I can put a***s in the stands and get a title shot."

Check out Blaydes' Instagram post below: