Have you found a new rival for Yana in Japan? Superstar Rizin will block Peter’s path
Sergey Sorokin June 11, 2024, 20:15 Moscow time Audio version: Your browser does not support the audio element.
Asakura will completely change the balance of power in the UFC bantamweight division.
The UFC continues to work on its roster, looking for new stars. Now league bosses are paying more and more attention to the Asian market. And they are especially attentive to what happens in Rizin’s promotion. The day before came the big news that Japanese league champion Kai Asakura had decided to relinquish his belt. And all because superstar Rizin has already signed a contract with the UFC. And now she can make some noise in the bantamweight division of the best promotion on the planet.
Kai Asakura’s tough knockout in the Yokohama tournament made us remember the golden times of Pride:
Video
Win a title with illegal kicks? In Japan this is possible. Video
Asakura himself was the first to announce the signing of a contract with the UFC. At the same time, Kai has not yet shown any special enthusiasm: “I will get rid of the belt and go to the UFC. I think there will be an announcement from the UFC soon, but it’s official now. I should be happy, but now I feel very alone. I think that thanks to Rizin, I, who was initially a nobody, was recognized as a fighter, a martial artist, a person. And last year, on New Year’s Eve, it was Mr. Sakakibara who accepted my selfish request to move to the UFC without a single defense. I would like to thank Mr. Sakakibara from the bottom of my heart for his support. Thank you so much”.
It is worth noting that Kai dedicated seven years to the Japanese promotion! His debut took place on December 29, 2017 at the Rizin Fighting World Grand Prix 2017 tournament and then Kizaemon Seiga became his opponent. The Japanese broke into the league with a technical knockout and calmly faced their rival. At the beginning of his journey to Rizin, Asakura achieved a streak of six consecutive victories. And then he had a rematch with Manel Kape, which turned out to be his first loss. The Japanese lost by technical knockout. After that, Kai fought nine more fights: he won seven and lost only two. Asakura left the fighters who were considered the league’s superstars speechless. And in the last fight he defeated Juan Archuleta in the Rizin 45 tournament.
This season, Rizin streams are available on OKKO.
It is curious that already in the first fight in the UFC, the Japanese can face a Russian fighter. Also, with the organization’s former champion (!), Petr Yan. This was reported by journalist Alex Bekhunin. He hinted that FC plans to give Asakura a debuting opponent from the top 5 of the bantamweight division. At the moment, only Henry Cejudo and Yan do not have fights announced. It is true that the Japanese will have to undergo an anti-doping program, so it is most likely that he will have to wait until the end of the year to debut. And there the situation in the top 5 can change very seriously.
Song Yadong and Peter Yang
Photo: Megan Briggs/Getty Images
It’s worth noting that if Yang gets the Asakura fight, it will be his second straight fight with an Asian fighter. In the previous, the Russian fought with Song Yadong. And that confrontation turned out to be a pretty serious problem for Peter. During the fight everything was very even. Of course, Yang took the victory by unanimous decision. But in battle, Yadong showed intransigence. And Kai could become another test of Peter’s strength.
It won’t be easy for the former UFC champion to get his belt back:
“I’m one fight away from the title.” Why is Peter Yan deceiving himself and fans?
Asakura can very seriously change the balance of power in the bantamweight division. It’s already very interesting there, as there are several contenders for Sean O’Malley’s belt. And now Kai rushes into this battle, he can cross paths with both Yan and Umar Nurmagomedov.
