Kai Asakura shuts down concerns around weight cut for UFC 310 title shot vs. Alexandre Pantoja
Kai Asakura claims there’s no reason to be worried about his ability to make flyweight for his UFC 310 title fight with Alexandre Pantoja.
Former RIZIN FF champion Asakura (21-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will join a rare group of fighters to receive a championship opportunity in their UFC debut when he challenges flyweight kingpin Pantoja (28-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) for gold in the main event of Dec. 7 card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2, ESPN+).
Although Asakura has found tremendous success competing in his native Japan, the big question mark when the signing and fight were made was around his ability to hit the strict 125-pound flyweight limit for a title bout. Asakura has never hit that mark, only getting as low as 125.7 pounds for his December 2015 fight at The Outsider 38 in Tokyo.
The narrative is one Asakura is not troubled by in any way, though, and he said no drama should be expected ahead of his official weigh-in.
“Totally zero (concern about making weight),” Asakura told MMA Junkie through an interpreter on Thursday. “I think a lot of people don’t realize I’ve fought at flyweight before. I’m accustomed to fighting at that weight. But with regards to my bantamweight fights, I wasn’t cutting a lot of weight. I was cutting a lot less than everybody else is cutting. So this is, to be frank with you, at flyweight I’m cutting a normal amount of weight than everything else would be cutting.”
Asakura, 31, said the original plan upon his UFC signing was to pit him against a top-three opponent in the division. It fell apart, however, and instead the organization opted to throw him directly into the highest profile spot against Pantoja.
Not all fighters would be afforded such a chance, but Asakura said he’s not ordinary. He thinks he brings something special that UFC fans and the flyweight division is craving, and is eager to back up those words when he steps into the world-famous octagon for the first time.
“I’m a little bit different than the other fighters,” Asakura said. “They’re bringing me in because they have expectations of me putting on a great show. I’m not here awe-struck. I’m here to show what I can do, and I’m here to show how great I am.
“I’m not trying to brag or say anything out of turn, but when you look at my Rizin fighting career, I’ve finished a lot of UFC guys until now. So to me, I wasn’t surprised to be put in this position where I was placed near the top of the card or in a title shot right away, because my record demonstrates I’m deserving of being there.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.