Tatsuro Taira Makes a Strong Comeback at UFC Fight Night
UFC’s rising flyweight contender, Tatsuro Taira, demonstrated his resilience this Saturday by overcoming his first professional setback with a dominant victory over South Korean HyunSung Park at UFC Fight Night. Taira (17-1) submitted Park (10-1) via face crank at 1:06 of the second round in the flyweight main event in Las Vegas. This was Taira’s first appearance since his split decision loss to Brandon Royval in October. The 25-year-old Japanese prodigy looked impeccable, adding his fifth finish, the best in the division, since 2022. The 125-pound matchup was put together on short notice. Originally, Taira was scheduled to face Amir Albazi at the UFC Apex, but Albazi (17-2) withdrew last week due to undisclosed medical reasons. The UFC turned to Park, who was slated to fight former title challenger Steve Erceg the following week in Las Vegas. The new couple turned out to be a complete mismatch. Taira knocked Park down with a right hand in the first minute and immediately took his back on the ground. Park showed good composure in recovering from the blow and avoiding Taira’s submission attempts, but could not find a way to free himself from Taira and get back on his feet.Taira wasted no time in launching himself at Park’s hips in the second round and, once again, took him down to the ground in the first minute. This time, Park couldn’t defend himself against Taira’s superior grip and quickly submitted to the face crank. Taira has finished eight of his 17 professional victories by submission and another five by knockout.
The victory improves Taira’s UFC record to 7-1. He was the number 6 flyweight in the UFC before Saturday. Had he faced Albazi, he would have had the opportunity to fight the division’s number 4 contender. Park, who signed with the company in 2023, arrived at the weekend without classification.
