Chris Barnett has a new opponent for his long-awaited return to the UFC cage.
Junior Tafa has stepped into UFC Fight Night 244 in place of Waldo Cortes-Acosta, the promotion recently announced. The three-round heavyweight bout will take place Oct. 12 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Cortes-Acosta’s manager Javier Torres, of Skillset Management, told MMA Junkie on Sunday an injury was cause for his client’s withdrawal. Cortes-Acosta is expected to return in six to eight weeks.
Tafa (5-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) most recently competed at UFC 305 in August when he lost to Valter Walker by verbal submission. Tempers flared after the stoppage. Tafa slapped Walker and the two were separated in the cage by security after the fight. The loss was his second straight.
Barnett (23-8 MMA, 2-2 UFC) hasn’t competed since September 2022. He was booked for two other dates since, but withdrew from each. Barnett’s most recent outing was a TKO against Jake Collier at UFC 279.
With the change, the UFC Fight Night 244 lineup includes:
- Brandon Royval vs. Tatsuro Taira
- Jun Yong Park vs. Brad Tavares
- Grant Dawson vs. Rafa Garcia
- Cory McKenna vs. Julia Polastri
- Alex Morono vs. Daniel Rodriguez
- Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Josh Fremd
- Jared Gooden vs. Chidi Njokuani
- Ramazonbek Temirov vs. CJ Vergara
- Jonathan Pearce vs. Pat Sabatini
- Themba Gorimbo vs. Niko Price
- Chris Barnett vs. Junior Tafa
- Dan Argueta vs. Cody Haddon
- Clayton Carpenter vs. Lucas Rocha
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 244.
