![]() It was an emotional moment for Lane and the team that had been there with him from the start. Last September, he was invited back to DWCS, and this time, he punched his ticket to the UFC with a first-round finish of Richard Jacobi. Lane doubled down, winning eight of his next nine fights, finishing each victory, including one over UFC vet Juan Adams in November of 2021. Some in Lane’s position might have said, okay, I gave it a shot, let’s move on. Lane was stopped by Hardy and lost his next fight three months later to Frank Tate. Remember, Lane had just a 4-0 pro record when he got a fight on season two of Dana White’s Contender Series in 2018 against fellow NFL vet Greg Hardy. ![]() That quest has brought him to the UFC, the end goal for most who compete in the sport, and while his name recognition could lead some to believe that he got a golden path to the Octagon, that’s not the case for the 35-year-old, who paid his dues to get to the big show. I think with my mindset and my work ethic, I could be successful anywhere, but I want to be successful here, not as the guy who is “a former NFL player and now MMA fighter.” When this is all said and done, I just want to be respected as an MMA fighter who earned his stripes, who paid his dues and became one of the best fighters in the world.” It's just something that I told myself I was going to do, and I have to see this through, and I have to take it as far as I can take it. But I would be pursuing this journey whether I was fighting in a parking lot or I was fighting on the biggest stage. Maybe in the future, radio broadcasting is still going to be there for me. “I turned those offers down because this is what I was meant to do,” he said. Those figures were nice, more than what a fighter in the early stages of his career would make. RELATED: Former Jaguars Defensive Lineman Austen Lane Set To Make UFC Debut In Jacksonville And he said, ‘Well, before you answer, let me send you some figures and then get back to me.’” And when we talk about the payout of those contracts, I remember one general manager reached out to me, he's like, ‘Hey, do you want to come work for us?’ And I said, ‘With all due respect, I'm going to keep on fighting here in Jacksonville this is where my camp is at, it's where all my teammates are. When I was let go, I had a couple offers to go around the country and work for other radio stations. ![]() “I was a co-host on a radio show here in Jacksonville,” Lane said. And for someone who already made it to the top of one sport and who didn’t need to fight to make a living or escape a bad situation, Lane’s decision to step into this new world is admirable, and it makes him a lot more dangerous than a lot of his peers because he wants to do it, even though there are other avenues out there for him. There are intangibles like heart and hunger, things that don’t show up on the tale of the tape. Then he decided to become a prizefighter in a sport where athleticism is a great tool to have in your back pocket, but it’s not the only thing necessary to succeed. Scary, right? Well, hockey’s loss was football’s gain, and after starring at Murray State, he was drafted in the fifth round of the 2010 draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars, going on to play in the NFL from 2010 to 2014. ![]() Imagine all 6-foot-6 of Austen Lane racing down the ice at you or dropping back to send an opponent into the boards. (Laughs) So football was definitely the sport after hockey.” In terms of physicality and all that, I was a pretty decent basketball player, too, but I'd be the guy that'd go in the game and get three fouls on me in literally five minutes. So then it geared towards football after that. I wanted be center, really, but I couldn't win a faceoff to save my life. They started me on defense, but I was one of the faster kids, so I ended up playing left wing. “Unfortunately, I had to stop playing it. “Actually, growing up hockey was probably my best sport,” said the 6-foot-6 Lane, who makes his UFC debut this weekend against Justin Tafa in Jacksonville. He’s made it to the pinnacle of the sport in football, and now in mixed martial arts, but if you take a look at his Instagram page, the ship may have sailed on a sport that he really might have excelled at.įull Jacksonville Fight Card Preview | Limited UFC Jacksonville Tickets Available Here
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