What is Robelis Despaigne’s wingspan? Olympic taekwondo medalist’s extraordinary reach causes frenzy among UFC fans

Robelis Despaigne signed to the UFC after another impressive performance at Fury FC 84, which aired on UFC Fight Pass. The 2012 Olympic bronze medalist in taekwondo has an 87-inch reach, which is the longest in UFC history.

His manager, AJ Ariosa, shared footage of Despaigne warming up, as well as a photo of his reach, captioning the tweets:

"For all the new fans of Robelis Despaigne. He was just signed to the UFC at 4-0 with all first round knockout. 6’7 Cuban Olympian with a 87 inch reach. Here’s my client warming up like a middleweight [Cuban flag].

"For reference, here’s a picture of his 87 inch reach (longest reach in ufc history) he’s around 4-5 people wide."

Check out the tweets from AJ Ariosa below:

Fans reacted to the signing, noting Despaigne's very lengthy wingspan. @Xavier_ratio stated that the former Olympic medalist will be able to get past most unranked fighters:

"No way this mfer has an 87 inch reach He’s clearly athletic as fuck so he’ll get past most unranked guys"

@RodneyFennell claimed that Despaigne would be dangerous:

"He's going to be dangerous nuff said"

@_MasteRyu suggested that the Cuban-born fighter may be too reliant on his reach:

"Another all reach.. 😴"

@googolfrlz questioned if his age will be a problem:

"imagine Robelis Despaigne loses bro, hes had 3 fights, 22 seconds of fight time, ko'd everyone in the first 16 seconds. 6'7 258 pound hw with the longest reach in ufc history. he might be a monster but hes f**king [35]"

@I_fhxd simply stated:

"87 💀"

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How did Robelis Despaigne land a UFC contract?

Robelis Despaigne made his mixed martial arts debut in June 2022, picking up a first-round TKO victory at Titan FC 77. He did not return to the sport for a full year. However, he made a statement upon his return, needing just 12 seconds to land another TKO victory at Fury FC 80.

Despaigne returned three months later, in September, at Fury Challenger Series 7 and landed another TKO victory in just three seconds. His most recent appearance came over the weekend at Fury FC 84, where he took just six seconds to pick up a knockout win.

Following the bout, Fury FC promoter Eric Garcia received a call from Mick Maynard with a contract offer for the former Olympic medalist. Ring announcer J. Wayne Leggett then made an announcement to the crowd and viewing audience that he had been signed.

@Grabaka_Hitman shared footage from the video, saying:

"Not sure I've seen this before. 10 minutes after this KO, it's announced that Despaigne has been signed to the UFC. Confirmed by Mick Maynard."

Check out footage of the announcement that Robelis Despaigne was signed to the UFC:

It is unclear when Despaigne will make his promotional debut. His age, combined with the hype around him following his quick knockouts, could lead to him being fast-tracked in the heavyweight division.