Kai Asakura explains why he is so much more dangerous for Alexandre Pantoja than the rest of the flyweight division 

Kai Asakura will be making his promotional debut against Alexandre Pantoja when the pair clash for the flyweight title in the main event of UFC 310 on Dec. 7. For many fans, the divisional newcomer is shrouded in mystery, having competed in Rizin for the past seven years.

But during a recent interview, the title challenger explained what separated him as a contender from the rest of the 125-pound fighters in this newfound promotion.

With 13 knockout wins out of his total of 21 career victories, the Japanese fighter has genuine showstopping power, something not often seen in the lightest weight class in the UFC.

The 31-year-old was recently interviewed by MMAJunkie, and was asked to share how he matched up against Pantoja, one of the division's most complete fighters. He said:

"I'm a little bit different than the other fighters in the flyweight division. I have the ability to capitalize on one of [Pantoja's] mistakes and put him to sleep. So that's what I'm aiming for. That's what makes my challenge for this type of fight different than anybody else."

Catch Kai Asakura's comments below (5:55):

UFC 310 was originally set to be headlined by a welterweight title fight between Belal Muhammad and Shavkat Rakhmonov. But 'Remember the Name' suffered a serious bone infection that forced him out of the matchup, with the flyweight title fight being promoted from co-main event to the headlining fight.

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Kai Asakura addresses concerns about his weight ahead of UFC 310

Kai Asakura will be competing at 125 pounds for the first time since 2017 when he faces off against Alexandre Pantoja at UFC 310. During his time at Rizin, Asakura competed in the bantamweight division, where he secured the title on two separate occasions.

With his flyweight return coinciding with arguably the biggest fight of his professional career to date, there are concerns that he may not make the 125-pound championship limit.

During his aforementioned interview with MMAJunkie, the 31-year-old addressed those concerns, saying:

"A lot of people don't realize I actually fought at flyweight before. I am accustomed to fighting at that weight. With regards to my bantamweight fights, I wasn't cutting a lot of weight. I was cutting a lot less than everyone else was cutting. At flyweight I'm cutting [the same] amount of weight as everybody else would normally cut... Totally zero [reason to be concerned." [7:30-8:03 in Kai Asakura's aforementioned interview]