In the co-main event of UFC 317 on Saturday, June 28, 2025, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Flyweight king Alexandre Pantoja dominated and submitted Kai Kara-France in the third round inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada (watch highlights).
“Don’t Blink” entered with strong support all week, bolstered by teammates Israel Adesanya and Alex Volkanovski cheering him on cageside during the fight. Their encouragement turned to despair as Pantoja finished Kara-France.
“No!” Adesanya said during the finishing sequence. “Please, please, no. Please. No. Let’s go, Kai. Fight Kai! That’s the game, man. F—k. I wanted this so bad for him. F—k man, F—k.”
Watch a very emotional Adesanya below:
Kara-France (25-12-1) has lost three of his last four fights, getting finished in two of them. The 32-year-old Kiwi is now 0-2 in UFC title fights (one of those was an interim title fight).
Ranked No. 4 in the division, “Don’t Blink” is going to do a lot of damage in the division to get back to another title shot.
A heated grudge match with Manel Kape feels like the perfect next step. UFC Perth, anyone?
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