Tag: Kai Kara-France

Kai Kara-France vs. Steve Erceg Added To Perth-Held UFC 305 On August 17

It’ll be Oceania vs. Oceania in Oceania when former flyweight title challengers Kai Kara-France and Steve Erceg share the Octagon at UFC 305 on August 17. Mixed martial arts’ leading promotion is set to be back on Australian soil later this summer, where Perth’s RAC Arena will play host to an event for the first time […]

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It’ll be Oceania vs. Oceania in Oceania when former flyweight title challengers Kai Kara-France and Steve Erceg share the Octagon at UFC 305 on August 17.

Mixed martial arts’ leading promotion is set to be back on Australian soil later this summer, where Perth’s RAC Arena will play host to an event for the first time since Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski’s memorable five-round battle last February.

Topping the lineup this time will be UFC Middleweight Champion Dricus Du Plessis and divisional legend Israel Adesanya. And the Nigerian-New Zealander won’t be the only fighter from that region competing close to home.

As well as the likes of Joshua Culibao and Jack Jenkins, New Zealand’s Kara-France is set to meet Australia’s Erceg in a key bout in the context of the flyweight division. 

The fight was announced by the promotion, while Kara-France himself discussed his long-awaited comeback at UFC 305 in an interview with Christopher Reive for the New Zealand Herald.

Kara-France, Erceg Target Bounce-Back Win At UFC 305

When the #4-ranked Kara-France and #9-ranked Erceg throw down in Perth in less than two months’ time, both will be looking for a crucial rebound performance.

Kara-France (24-11, 1 NC) hasn’t been in action since June 2023 when he suffered a narrow main event decision loss to Amir Albazi at the Apex in Las Vegas. The result sent “Don’t Blink” onto the first losing skid of his UFC career, having followed an interim title defeat opposite Brandon Moreno 11 months prior at UFC 277 in Dallas.

If the New Zealander is to taste victory for the first time since his win over Askar Askrav 27 months ago, he must stall the charge of Erceg (12-2) and his pursuit of a rematch with reigning champion Alexandre Pantoja. The Aussie battled “The Cannibal” in the main event of UFC 301 in Brazil this past May, an opportunity that came off the back of three quick wins following his arrival in the promotion.

Despite a valiant attempt in Rio de Janeiro, “AstroBoy” was ultimately unable to unseat the champ. After expressing his desire to bounce back on home soil this August, Erceg has had his wish granted, and he’ll now look to return to the win column at the expense of Kara-France.

Image: Jason Silva/USA TODAY Sports

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Robbery Of The Year – LowKick MMA 2023 Awards

Robbery of the YearWhile there were plenty of options available for Robbery of the Year in 2023, the LowKick MMA staff largely…

Robbery of the Year

While there were plenty of options available for Robbery of the Year in 2023, the LowKick MMA staff largely landed on one especially egregious decision as its favorite. Or in this case, least favorite.

Earning five nominations and running away with the vote was the June 3 main event clash between former interim flyweight title challenger Kai Kara-France and streaking division standout Amir Albazi.

Robbery of the Year – Amir Albazi vs. Kai Kara-France – UFC Fight Night: Kara-France vs. Albazi – (5 votes)

Amir Albazi scored the biggest win of his career, but in the eyes of many, including UFC CEO Dana White, it left a lot of unanswered questions.

Throughout their five-round affair, neither fighter could assert themselves for long stretches. However, Kara-France noticeably upped his urgency as time went on, delivering a strong finish that convinced several of his peers that he had won the fight. Instead, Albazi was handed the victory via split decision, causing an uproar from fans and fighters alike.

Kara-Frances’ teammate, Israel Adesanya, immediately called for firing the two judges who favored Albazi along with offering some more colorful commentary in response to the blatant robbery.

Honorable Mentions:

Joselyn Edwards vs. Lucie Pudilova – UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. Allen – (2 votes)

Kicking off the UFC’s return to Kansas City, Joselyn Edwards escaped with a much-maligned split decision after giving up seven and a half minutes of control time to Lucie Pudilova. Scoring on two of her seven takedown attempts, Pudilova lit up Edwards on the ground with a series of ground-and-pound strikes. However, Edwards held the advantage in significant strikes, landing 56 compared to Pudilova’s 39.

Media scores from 15 MMA news outlets favored Pudilova with them primarily pointing to her control time that spanned 50% of the contest. In the end, Edwards walked away with a split decision, giving us our first big robbery of 2023.

Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski – UFC 284 – (1 vote)

This is one nomination for Robbery of the Year that had fight fans understandably split. After dominating the featherweight division for years, Alexander Volkanovski stepped up to lightweight for an opportunity to challenge reigning 155-pound champion Islam Makhachev.

Earning Fight of the Year honors, Makhachev vs. Volkanovski delivered a brilliant back-and-forth battle that ultimately saw the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ leave with his title intact, though it didn’t come without a bit of controversy. Makhachev clearly controlled the ground game, scoring four of nine takedowns with more than seven and a half minutes of control time.

But it was Volkanovski who would go on to land 164 total strikes compared to Makhachev’s 95. That discrepancy was more than enough for fans to see it in favor of Volkanovski, but all three judges disagreed, favoring Makhachev via unanimous decision.

Khamzat Chimaev vs. Kamaru usman – UFC 294 – (1 vote)

Former welterweight world champion Kamaru Usman stepped into UFC 294 on 11 days’ notice to square off with undefeated Chechen monster Khamzat Chimaev in the evening’s co-main event. Despite the short-notice nature of the contest and the fact that Usman was moving up a weight class, Chimaev had a surprisingly difficult time while tussling with ‘The Nigerian Nightmare.’

After 15 minutes, judge David Lethaby scored the bout a 28-28 draw while judges Derek Clearly and Vito Paolillo scored it in favor of Chimaev, resulting in a majority decision. Though not everyone agreed with the decision, Chimaev landed nearly twice as many total strikes as his opponent. On top of that, Chimaev scored on four of 12 attempted takedowns resulting in 7:16 in control time.

Which robbery would you have voted as the best (or worst) or 2023?

Full List Of The LowKick MMA 2023 Robbery Of The Year Votes:

  • Ross Markey: Amir Albazi
  • Ian Shutts: Amir Albazi
  • Murdo Todd: Joselyn Edwards
  • Craig Pekios: Islam Makhachev
  • Makoa Goble: Amir Albazi
  • Tony King: Amir Albazi
  • Red Pill MMA: Khamzat Chimaev
  • Michael Owens: Amir Albazi
  • Danny Podolsky: Joselyn Edwards

Manel Kape drops homophobic slur in vulgar UFC 293 post-Fight tirade at City Kickboxing fighters

Manel KapeFlyweight standout Manel Kape didn’t let Charlie Radtke have all the fun on Saturday night. ‘Starboy’ stepped into the Octagon as part of the promotion’s stacked UFC 293 main card inside the Qudos Bank Arena with late-notice replacement opponent Felipe dos Santos. Despite having two weight cuts in a relatively short period of time, dos […]

Manel Kape

Flyweight standout Manel Kape didn’t let Charlie Radtke have all the fun on Saturday night.

‘Starboy’ stepped into the Octagon as part of the promotion’s stacked UFC 293 main card inside the Qudos Bank Arena with late-notice replacement opponent Felipe dos Santos. Despite having two weight cuts in a relatively short period of time, dos Santos brought the fight to Kape throughout their three-round affair. Both fighters delivered a highly entertaining fight for the fans in Australia that ultimately saw Manel Kape score a unanimous decision win that extended his win streak to four.

Unfortunately, the 15-minute slugfest was quickly forgotten as Kape took to the mic and delivered an explicit-filled post-fight interview that largely targeted his original opponent for the event, Kai Kara-France.

“I was supposed to fight Kai Kara. You motherf*cker, you’re here. You show up, you piece of sh*t,” Manel Kape said, directing his comments toward Kara-France who was in the crowd. “You are a piece of sh*t. That’s what you are. Hey, listen guys. Listen. I’m gonna fight you next and if you refuse again to fight me, I’m going to your city. I’m going to your camp. I’m gonna spar you there and no one’s gonna do anything. You know why? All your teammates are a bunch of f****ts.

Manel Kape Wasn’t the Only Fighter to Drop the Other F-Bomb at UFC 293

It was the second such interview of the night where a fighter dropped the homophobic slur following an otherwise noteworthy victory. The first came when UFC newcomer Charlie Radtke called fans in attendance the same disgusting word as they booed his performance against Mike Mathetha, aka Blood Diamond, during the early prelims.

As he did with Radtke, Daniel Cormier quickly pulled the microphone away from Kape and wrapped up the interview.

With two separate incidents of homosexual vilification on the same night, one has to wonder what the UFC will do if anything to curb the unnecessary and downright vile insults that plagued an otherwise entertaining event in The Land Down Under.

Israel Adesanya calls out judges for controversial split decision at UFC Vegas 74: ‘F*ck them c*nts’

Israel AdesanyaIsrael Adesanya was left absolutely fuming after teammate Kai Kara-France came up short on the judges’ scorecards Saturday night. On the cusp of a bantamweight world title fight, Kara-France entered the UFC Vegas 74 headliner determined to make a statement en route to an inevitable championship opportunity. Instead, ‘Don’t Blink’ saw his opponent, Amir Albazi, […]

Israel Adesanya

Israel Adesanya was left absolutely fuming after teammate Kai Kara-France came up short on the judges’ scorecards Saturday night.

On the cusp of a bantamweight world title fight, Kara-France entered the UFC Vegas 74 headliner determined to make a statement en route to an inevitable championship opportunity. Instead, ‘Don’t Blink’ saw his opponent, Amir Albazi, leave Las Vegas with the biggest win of his career via a split decision. Fans online were seemingly split with many suggesting Albazi’s control time was the deciding factor despite Kara-France landing 56 more significant strikes throughout the 25-minute duration.

Reacting to the somewhat controversial decision, Israel Adesanya unleashed his wrath on embattled judges Chris Lee and Sal D’Amato who awarded Albazi the win with identical 48-47 scores.

“Nah bro…F*ck yous!!!” Adesanya wrote on Twitter in the first of four scathing tweets. He followed that up with another post that took aim at the two judges in question. “Fire Chris Lee & Sal Deez nuts,” Adesanya continued in a second message.

‘The Last Stylebender’ was far from done.

“I tweeted that before even seeing the scorecards because I knew them two will f*ck it up!!” Adesanya wrote in a third tweet. “How many times will they rob athletes of their moments of glory, of [sic] their money, their livelihood for their family? F*ck them c*nts, they need to expire quickly and go. Mike Bell was the only judge to score this properly, the other two deff need to disappear.”

Israel Adesanya posted a fourth, and much more tame tweet, suggesting that judges should publicly address their reasoning behind questionable scores while facing consequences for handing fights to competitors that clearly didn’t earn the victory.

“Start interviewing the judges after fights,” Adesanya wrote. “Hold them accountable for their work.”

Israel Adesanya May Be Biased, but Is He Wrong?

Of course, there is a bit of bias as Israel Adesanya and Kai Kara-France are both teammates under the City Kickboxing banner in New Zealand. ‘Stylebender’ had a similar response following the loss of teammate Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 284 in February. The Great’ went toe-to-toe with reigning lightweight champion Islam Makhachev for five rounds and in the eyes of many, did more than enough damage to secure a win over the Dagestani destroyer.

In Saturday’s main event, Amir Albazi had 6:10 of control time during the 25-minute affair but failed to do any damage aside from a very tight rear-naked choke submission attempt that Kara-France was able to work his way out of. When it comes to the top criteria, damage, ‘Don’t Blink’ was significantly ahead. The Kiwi landed 99 significant strikes compared to 43 from Albazi. Total strikes were even further apart with Kara-Frace landing 133 versus 64. Kara-France also scored two takedowns in two attempts while Albazi officially landed one out of nine. Kara France also out-landed Albazi in all five rounds.

Do you agree with Israel Adesanya’s assessment of last night’s decision?

Amir Albazi snags split decision win over Kai Kara-France, calls for flyweight title shot – UFC Vegas 74 Highlights

Kai Kara-FranceKai Kara-France and Amir Albazi put on a show in the UFC Vegas 74 main event. The two top-10 flyweight standouts went toe-to-toe for a full 25 minutes on Saturday night at The APEX, but only one man was able to walk out with his hand raised and a potential title opportunity in his future. […]

Kai Kara-France

Kai Kara-France and Amir Albazi put on a show in the UFC Vegas 74 main event.

The two top-10 flyweight standouts went toe-to-toe for a full 25 minutes on Saturday night at The APEX, but only one man was able to walk out with his hand raised and a potential title opportunity in his future. Kai Kara-France and Albazi put on a five-round striking clinic that saw each fighter find their share of moments, but it was Kara-Frace who had the superior movement, allowing him to jump ahead early in the significant strike totals.

While the Kiwi had striking totals on his side, Albazi was arguably landing the bigger blows, making the scorecards relatively unpredictable after the first two rounds. ‘The Prince’ was able to get things down to the ground in round three, taking Kara-France’s back and slapping on a body lock. With less than a minute to go, Kara-France was able to fight back up to his feet and reverse position, sliding into the guard of Albazi where he remained for the final 30 seconds of the third.

With the fourth round being incredibly close, both fighters came out with a sense of urgency in the fifth and final round. Kara-France went on the attack early prompting Albazi to change levels and work for a takedown but was unsuccessful in taking things to the ground. The final three minutes saw both fighters letting their hands go and giving the fans in Las Vegas a show. By the time the final bell rang, Kara-France had swelled to a -400 favorite after landing 38 more significant strikes than the opposition, but did the judges see it that way?

Official Result: Amir Albazi def. Kai Kara-France via split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47)

Check Out Highlights From Kai Kara-France vs. Amir Albazi at UFC Vegas 74 Below: