Fight Coverage
Significant Stats | UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura
Preview The Key Matchups On UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura Using Stats
(All stats according to UFC’s Record Book as of December 4, 2024, and only include active athletes in their respective division unless noted otherwise)
Main Event: Alexandre Pantoja vs Kai Asakura
Alexandre Pantoja
Key Stats: 47.9% takedown accuracy (7th all-time among FLW), 4.41 strikes landed per minute (9th all-time among FLW), 2.61 takedowns averaged per 15 minutes
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What It Means: “The Cannibal” is a well-rounded mixed martial artist, but perhaps his greatest intangible strength is his resolve and grittiness. Pantoja, although a highly skilled jiu jitsu player and powerful striker, just seems to be able to find a way to win when a fight gets tight. Whether it’s hustling to secure a takedown or biting down on his mouthpiece to keep the pressure on when both he and his opponent are worn down, Pantoja doesn’t seem to let fatigue impact his effort. He does have good power, and his grappling is excellent in scrambles and when maintaining control.
Kai Asakura
Key Stats: N/A – UFC Debut
Kai Asakura | Among The Best
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Kai Asakura | Among The Best
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What It Means: A star in Japan, Kai Asakura is a welcome addition to the flyweight division. He is a fighter who loves to stand and bang, and he has wicked power in his hands. He particularly likes to plant a straight right on his opponents when moving backward, and he has a heck of a knack for landing counter knees on his opponents as they move in on him. Asakura doesn’t just head hunt, as he plants nice punches and kicks to the open side of his opponent’s body.
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What to Look For in the Fight: This fight should be a back-and-forth, drag-em-out affair between two fighters eager to engage in a war. Pantoja will be well served to mix in grappling early, but he must be weary of Asakura’s knees when the debutant is moving backward. Asakura will have to pick his moments, and when Pantoja presses forward or blitzes with strikes, he’ll have his opportunities to land a powerful strike, but he’ll still need to be mindful of Pantoja engaging in the clinch.
Co-Main Event: Shavkat Rakhmonov vs Ian Machado Garry
Shavkat Rakhmonov
Key Stats: 8:22 average fight time (7th), 51% control time percentage (5th), +1.71 striking differential
What It Means: Shavkat Rakhmonov is a calm, composed savage in the Octagon. Whether he is getting his work done on the feet or grappling, he just has a freaky ability to find a finish. His striking is solid with very little wasted movement, but he is also good for a surprisingly dynamic technique here and there such as a spinning kick. He has good power in his hands, and he plays well with the threat of his grappling.
Ian Machado Garry
Key Stats: 55.4% significant striking accuracy (3rd all-time among WW), +2.33 striking differential (5th all-time among WW), 5.5 strikes landed per minute (8th)
What It Means: “The Future” is a technician of a fighter. He is quick and sharp on the feet, whether he is moving forward making reads or sitting back and choosing to counter. Machado Garry does well to use the most of his lanky frame, sticking long punches in his opponent’s face and staying in kicking range, where he likes to pick apart opponents with a variety of attacks. While he can also mix things up and wrestle a little bit, he definitely prefers to get his work done with his hands. He is supremely confident in his speed and technique and tends to build into fights well as he gathers information.
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What to Look For in the Fight: This battle between undefeated fighters is one of the most fascinating matchups to be made in the welterweight division at present. Machado Garry will likely start the fight using his speed and footwork to keep Rakhmonov at bay. He’ll have to be mindful of throwing his arsenal of kicks, lest Rakhmonov use that as an opportunity to get on the inside and either initiate some grappling or get into range for his own powerful strikes. Machado Garry’s grappling has continued to improve as he has developed, but Rakhmonov is probably the best submission threat he has faced. Any slip up, and Rakhmonov will start attacking his neck quickly.
Other Fights to Watch (Ciryl Gane vs Alexander Volkov, Movsar Evloev vs Aljamain Sterling)
Ciryl Gane
Key Stats: +3.3 striking differential (6th all-time), 60.9% significant strike accuracy (5th all-time among HW), 63.2% significant strike defense (3rd all-time among HW)
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What It Means: “Bon Gamin” is a unique heavyweight in terms of his skills on the feet and speed with which he throws techniques. The Frenchman is incredibly light and fast for his size, and he has an almost playful approach to striking, especially to start a fight. He will flick his jab, as well as fire off kicks to the body and legs before he sits down on a strike. He is more than happy to stay on the outside and lean on his skills to get the job done, but if he does sense a finish, he goes after it with a patient ferocity.
Alexander Volkov
Key Stats: +2.25 striking differential (5th all-time among HW), 5.46 strikes landed per minute (10th all-time among HW), 55.4% significant strike defense
What It Means: Alexander Volkov has always been one of the better technical strikers in the heavyweight division since he joined the roster. As of late, it seems like he has combined that technique with a mindful aggressiveness that makes the most of his gigantic frame. Volkov throws heavy kicks to the body, and his front kick is a particularly good weapon for him. His boxing is smooth, as well, and he does well to cut an angle to find a meaningful shot.
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What to Look For in the Fight: Similar to their first fight, this matchup should play out almost entirely on the feet. Volkov will have to close the distance on the faster Gane, and Gane’s physical advantages will be much more familiar for “Drago” this time. Gane could very well come with the same gameplan of keeping Volkov at distance using his speed and footwork, but Gane does seem keen to get himself back in the title discussion, so finding the moment for a finish could be of paramount importance to him.
Movsar Evloev
Key Stats: 36 takedowns landed (tied 3rd all-time among BW), 40.4% control time percentage (7th), 45% takedown accuracy (6th)
What It Means: Movsar Evloev is a rock-solid mixed martial artist with great wrestling ability and slightly underrated striking. On the feet, he is technically proficient and has shown the knack and timing for landing a big strike, whether it’s a punch or a flying knee. Part of that is understanding the threat of his wrestling, which is always going to be his number one path to victory. Evloev is a patient and sturdy wrestler, who is happy to maintain control once he gets his opponent to the mat and slowly grind away a win.
Aljamain Sterling
Key Stats: 2.31 takedowns averaged per 15 minutes, 27% takedown accuracy, 45% takedown defense
What It Means: The 35-year-old “Funk Master” looked comfortable in his first foray into the featherweight division against Calvin Kattar. Although he doesn’t have the same size advantage in the bantamweight division, Sterling is still a big 45er, and his grappling technique remains suffocatingly effective. Sterling has unorthodox striking, and he isn’t an overwhelming wrestler as much as a unique tangle of limbs and Fight IQ that makes him a problem for his opponents. He is able to wrangle his opponents and threaten submissions with great regularity. On the feet, his striking is, for the lack of a better term, funky, but he does have good kicks from distance.
What to Look For in the Fight: The general consensus is this fight is going to test each man’s grappling abilities to the nth degree. Sterling has shown more of a willingness to play the jiu jitsu game than Evloev, but against a human weighted blanket like Evloev, that’s a tricky game to play. Evloev hasn’t really faced a grappler like Sterling, who combines conventional MMA wrestling with a sick jiu jitsu and submission game. Whether either man feels confident enough about their striking to try to keep the fight there is unclear. This fight should, instead, be one full of scrambles and an exercise in finding places to create leverage and control.
UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 7, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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