Former RIZIN champ Kai Asakura is one of only a handful of competitors to score a UFC title shot without registering a single fight inside the Octagon.
Asakura, 31, came up short against current flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 310, then faltered in his rebound fight opposite longtime contender Tim Elliott.
Time for a change of scenery.
“I’m going to move up a weight class, so I’m going to have to prepare properly and get my body in shape again,” Asakura (21-6) said on YouTube. “It might
be next year or so, but I’ll definitely win my next fight. It’s not because someone told me to, but because I’ve always done things based on my own instincts. I want to win.”
Out of the frying pan and into the fire?
Bantamweight is stacked with formidable talent and could prove to be a stiff test for the Japanese phenom. Even setting aside current champion Merab Dvalishvili, Asakura would be dealing with heavy-handed strikers like Sean O’Malley and punishing wrestlers like Umar Nurmagomedov.
Expect to see Asakura make his bantamweight debut in early 2026.
