Kai Asakura Promises a Knockout at UFC 310: ‘One Shot Is All I Need’ Against Alexandre Pantoja
UFC newcomer Kai Asakura plans to put his knockout power on display against flyweight titleholder Alexandre Pantoja.
After making a name for himself under the RIZIN FF banner, capturing the promotion’s bantamweight title on two separate occasions and stacking bodies with a slew of highlight-reel knockouts, Asakura makes his UFC debut at the promotion’s final pay-per-view event of the year on December 7.
But he’s not just fighting on the card — he’s headlining it.
Asakura steps into the main event spotlight in his first UFC outing and plans on bringing the flyweight championship back home to Japan, becoming the first Japanese-born fighter to do so in the UFC’s modern era.
Looking ahead to their highly anticipated clash at UFC 310 in Las Vegas, Asakura made a rather bold prediction for his promotional premiere.
“I don’t see him [Pantoja] representing any problems for me anywhere,” Asakura told the UFC during a recent interview. “He’s someone I don’t think I’ll have any problem dealing with. The advantage I hold over Pantoja is that I have one-shot knockout power, so it only takes one shot and I’m expecting this fight to be over with one shot…
“I know in the history of the UFC, there have been many famous knockout scenes, but I’m hoping that at UFC 310, I can add my finish to those highlight reels.”
Kai Asakura warns fans to not blink during final UFC title fight of 2024
Asakura, 31, is 21-4 in his mixed martial arts career with 13 of his victories coming by way of knockout. His last appearance came at RIZIN 45 when he scored a second-round TKO against former Bellator champion Juan Archuleta. Asakura also holds victories over Manel Kape and Kyoji Horiguchi.
“Since I started fighting, I always wanted to be the best in the world [and] to me, it would all be meaningless unless I reached the very top,” Asakura said in a promo hyping his clash with Pantoja. “I’m here to become UFC champion, I have a stronger will than anybody else. I know how to achieve my goals and that’s all I’m focused on.”
