The bad blood boiled over after a yelling match marked the end of the preliminary card for UFC 305. Valter Walker defeated Junior Tafa by verbal submission via heel hook at 4:56 of Round 1. Referee Steve Perceval stopped the heavyweight bout Saturday at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, when Walker rolled Tafa.
Early stoppages are always chided upon, but this was different. Junior Tafa let out a shrieking yell which caused the stoppage. Tafa took exception to the interruption. He exchanged words with Walker and eventually slapped him. As the two fighters and their teams exchanged words, security stepped in between them. Before Walker cut a pro-wrestling-style promo during his in-cage interview, Tafa flipped the bird at his opponent during the official decision.
Despite some confusion on the part of ESPN commentators Daniel Cormier and Dominick Cruz, the Unified Rules of MMA define a verbal submission as when a contestant makes a verbal announcement to the referee. That he or she will not continue, indicating pain or discomfort. Play-by-play replay showed Tafa clearly shouting in pain, before recovering and flipping the Team GOR MMA fighter.
Following an unsuccessful debut against Lukasz Brzeski in April, the win is Walkerโs first in the UFC. Walker is the younger brother of UFC lightweight contender, Johnny Walker. Tafa has now lost two matches in a row. Heโs UFC heavyweight Justin Tafaโs younger brother, who he last replaced on short notice. After UFC 298, this is the second outing riddled with a Tafa-physicality that has gone viral.
Fight fans react to possible early stoppage at UFC 305
Valter Walkerโs first-round technical submission win over Junior Tafa at UFC 305 at RAC Arena was controversial, to say the least. Not because it was a premature stoppage but because it would come off as so. Whatโs more surprising is that Tafa got into a violent altercation afterward, contesting the decision. An early stoppage is always a thing in MMA.
Even as recent as the UFC 304 PPVโs main event saw signs of an early stoppage until it was debunked by pundits. Tafa slapping his opponent too falls to be not an early stoppage. Moreover, the unsportsmanlike conduct has taken many fans aback. Hereโs how they have reacted to it.
Most fans have unanimously agreed that they might not get it, but they get the decision. A few others have even jibed down Tafa for yelling and yet lashing out at his opponent for it. Junior Tafaโs pre-fight hit list included the Walker brothers. Now, subsequently, โClean Monsterโ Valter, 26, has called on the other Tafs brother to settle this feud. All in all, the decision, and moreover the slap has gone quite viral.