Preview: UFC 310 ‘Pantoja vs. Asakura’

The Ultimate Fighting Championship’s final pay-per-view of 2024 has arrived, and UFC 310 should be an enjoyable exercise. Alexandre Pantoja for the second time this year finds himself in a main event that’s a bit of a stretch in terms of star power but should be exciting in practice, as he defends his flyweight title against promotional newcomer Kai Asakura. A strong supporting cast provides a boost. Undefeated welterweights Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Garry lock horns in the five-round co-headliner, while a rematch between heavyweight contenders Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov comes at an interesting time. Two featherweight tilts round out the lineup and bring their own level of intrigue, as Bryce Mitchell meets Kron Gracie and Nate Landwehr faces Doo Ho Choi.

Now to the UFC 310 “Pantoja vs. Asakura” preview:

UFC Flyweight Championship

#11 P4P | Alexandre Pantoja (28-5, 12-3 UFC) vs. Kai Asakura (21-4, 0-0 UFC)

ODDS: Pantoja (-285), Asakura (+230)

It’s still a bit hard to know what to make of Pantoja’s title reign, but it’s nice that it’s even happening, as it marks the culmination of a hard-fought and underrated career. Pantoja was deservedly the top seed on the all-flyweight season of “The Ultimate Fighter” in 2016, and after falling short there, “The Cannibal” continued to establish himself as one of the best and most exciting 125-pound fighters in the world. However, through about 2020, it looked like Pantoja would be the proverbial bridesmaid and never the bride. He still won a lot more than he lost but had a knack for ill-timed losses that would leave him just outside of the title picture. Pantoja eventually strung together three straight wins, including dominant victories over Brandon Royval and Alex Perez, to essentially become undeniable as the next contender for the flyweight title. Beyond the results themselves, the Brazilian was putting in his most focused performances to date behind the aggressive style that made him so exciting at the start of his career. Pantoja’s shot finally came against old foe Brandon Moreno in July 2023, a familiar pairing for both men. Pantoja beat Moreno on the aforementioned season of “The Ultimate Fighter” and again at UFC Fight Night 129 in 2018. Their third fight was the closest to date, but Pantoja once again wound up the victor in one of the best fights of the year, finally earning his time in the sun. Pantoja’s first title defense was a bit of a dud, however. It was a rematch against Royval, and when compared to the quick and violent sprint of their first encounter, it was a wrestling-heavy affair that saw Pantoja grind his way to a decision victory. Things corrected themselves in May, with Pantoja’s second title defense against Steve Erceg. It was stretched thin as a main event promotionally, as it paired perhaps the UFC’s most anonymous champion with a relative unknown as a contender, but it was another nip-tuck war that saw Pantoja come out ahead on the scorecards, once again pulling his wrestling game out of his back pocket. Given the UFC’s historic reluctance to put flyweights in the main event, it’s a bit amusing that Pantoja once again falls into headlining status against someone mostly unknown to the public, drawing a Japanese newcomer in Asakura in this assignment.

Asakura has had his own hard-fought rise to the top, going from street fighter to cult favorite to star in his native country. As a fighter, Asakura can fall victim to the typical rhythms of Japanese mixed martial arts at times, becoming overly choosy in when to fire, but he’s much more effective than the typical flyweight when he decides to go. Asakura’s knockout power has brought him his most consistent success, with brutal knees to the body ending his last two fights. That should make Pantoja’s game plan here fairly obvious, but attempting to outwrestle Asakura should be an interesting proposition. The Japanese newcomer probably has the least to offer on the mat of Pantoja’s last few opponents, but he has shown the ability to make opponents pay greatly when things go wrong. That means any aggression from Pantoja comes with the risk of Asakura ending this clash with one shot. Still, Pantoja is probably the safer bet, particularly with Asakura cutting down to 125 pounds after spending the last half a decade or so at bantamweight. Pantoja consistently wears himself out with the pace that he sets, but that weight cut makes it likely that Asakura will be just as tired trying to keep up with the Brazilian round after round. While this is the most dangerous of Pantoja’s title defenses, it figures to follow a similar recipe: some struggles on the feet for the champion before he salts away the win by constantly taking the fight to the mat. The pick is Pantoja via decision.

Jump To »
Pantoja vs. Asakura
Rakhmonov vs. Garry
Gane vs. Volkov
Mitchell vs. Gracie
Landwehr vs. Choi
The Prelims