"Trying to kill me” - Kai Asakura shares wild story about how his brother’s street-fighting challenge kickstarted his MMA career 

Kai Asakura is set to make his UFC debut against Alexandre Pantoja on Dec. 7. The pair will compete for the flyweight title in a thrilling matchup, which is scheduled to headline UFC 310, the promotion's final pay-per-view card of 2024.

The Japanese star will be returning to flyweight for the first time since 2017, having competed in the bantamweight division of Japan's most famous MMA promotion Rizin.

Asakura held Rizin's 135-pound title before his departure to the UFC. Ahead of his debut in his newfound home, the 31-year-old shared his journey into MMA in a truly startling revelation.

During the UFC's Countdown episode for their upcoming PPV card, the promotional debutant said:

"The story of how I got into MMA is quite crazy. My older brother was fighting in the street every day. He beat everyone and there was no one left to fight. So one day, my older brother called me into the street in the middle of the night. Suddenly he gave me some boxing gloves to wear. He was really trying to kill me with each strike. I was able to dodge everything. It was the first time I ever had a real fight. That's when I realized I had serious potential as a fighter."

Check out Kai Asakura's comments below (6:45):

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Kai Asakura explains what separates him from rest of UFC's flyweight division ahead of debut

UFC 310 will see Alexandre Pantoja defend his flyweight title against Kai Asakura in the main event of the evening.

With the Japanese MMA fighter a lesser-known commodity amongst most of the UFC fanbase, there is uncertainty as to how his clash with 'The Cannibal' could unfold

The Brazilian champion successfully retained his title against Steve Erceg at UFC 301 in May, and is regarded as potentially the division's most complete fighter. But Asakura believes he has the tools to dethrone the reigning king at 125 pounds.

The title challenger was recently interviewed by MMAJunkie, where he was asked how he felt he matched up against Pantoja. Asakura 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 (3:10):