Japanese fighting sensation Kai Asakura will have an opportunity to capture a UFC title in his very first fight with the promotion, a flyweight headliner opposite reigning 125-pound champion Alexandre Pantoja atop the UFC 310 pay-per-view (PPV) card on Dec. 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
It’s unusual for matchmakers to book a title challenger without first introducing him (or her) to UFC fans, which may suggest the promotion wants to bump Pantoja from the throne for a more “exciting” option. Asakura is coming off back-to-back knockouts in RIZIN whereas Pantoja has gone to a decision in his last three title fights.
“Let’s be honest: It’s good business for the UFC if I win,” Asakura told MMA Junkie. “I’m here to make it exciting, for people to have interest in the flyweight division and have a whole bunch of new matchups ready to have on future shows. I hope one day Dana White will turn to the audience and say this kid is a special KO artist, a KO machine.”
Pantoja sees that as an opportunity to raise his own stock, as well.
“I think it’s good if he’s right because for me, it’s going to be better,” Pantoja told MMA Junkie. “I think for him, it’s motivation to go to the UFC and have everything like that. (It’s) a huge motivation for him because he’s a big star. He knows how to be a star in Japan. Now he has an opportunity to be a big star in the world, and this makes me more excited to have the opportunity to fight a guy like him.”
The promotion would certainly have an easier time finding opponents for Asakura, like former flyweight champion Brandon Moreno. Pantoja already holds two victories over “The Assassin Baby” and is probably one fight away from cleaning out the 125-pound division, thanks to previous wins over Brandon Royval and Manel Kape, among others.
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