New Zealand flyweight Kai Kara-France says his June 3 match-up with Amir Albazi is now a five-round affair.
The Fight Night card, numerically UFC on ESPN 46, had been expected to be headlined by Jack Hermansson vs. Brendan Allen. However, with Hermansson recently forced out of the fight, the search was on for a new main event.
With Kara-France (24-10, 1NC) vs. Albazi (16-1) already on the card, it was a heavy favorite for headlining duties, and it appears to have got the nod. The news was revealed by Kara-France himself on the “Who the Fook Are These Guys?” podcast.
Promotion officials have not yet officially announced the change.
Kara-France has not competed since losing an interim title fight opposite Brandon Moreno last July. Prior to that setback, “Don’t Blink” had compiled three straight wins over Askar Askarov, ex-bantamweight champ Cody Garbrandt, and Rogerio Bontorin.
Albazi, meanwhile, is yet to taste defeat under the UFC banner and has one his first four fights with the promotion. Most recently, he knocked out Alessandro Costa in the final event of 2022.
The UFC’s June 3, 2023 Fight Night card sees the promotion back at the Apex in Las Vegas. The following match-ups have been reported for the event:
- Kai Kara-France vs. Amir Albazi
- Miesha Tate vs. Mayra Bueno Silva
- Tim Elliott vs. Victor Altamirano
- Jinh Yu Frey vs. Elise Reed
- David Onama vs. Khusein Askhabov
- Alex Caceres vs. Daniel Pineda
- Jim Miller vs. Ľudovít Klein
- Abubakar Nurmagomedov vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos
- John Castañeda vs. Mateus Mendonça
- Da’Mon Blackshear vs. Luan Lacerda
- Maxim Grishin vs. Philipe Lins
Card numbering has been updated to reflect that this is UFC on ESPN 46.
