The UFC Flyweight Championship will be on the line when Alexandre Pantoja of Brazil battles Kai Asakura of Japan to highlight the main card at Saturday's UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The early preliminary card is expected to get underway around 6 p.m. ET, with the prelims at main UFC 310 fight card starting around 10 p.m. ET. Pantoja is coming off a flyweight title defense win over Steve Erceg by unanimous decision at UFC 301 this past May. Asakura will be making his UFC debut, after competing for the Rizin Fighting Federation since December 2017.
Pantoja is a -270 favorite (risk $270 to win $100), while Asakura is priced at +220 (risk $100 to win $220) in the latest UFC 310 odds, with that fight listed at -250 to not go the distance. The co-main event is a welterweight battle between Shavkat Rakhmonov (-420) and Ian Garry (+320), both top-10 contenders in that division. The other fights on the main card are Ciryl Gane (-400) vs. Alexander Volkov (+310), Bryce Mitchell (-900) vs. Kron Gracie (+600) and Nate Landwehr (-135) vs. Doo Ho Choi (+115).
Before making any UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura picks, be sure to see the UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura predictions and best bets from SportsLine's Daniel Vithlani.
Vithlani is a highly-analytical UFC bettor who has been a consistent winner for SportsLine members since making his debut in January 2023 with a 5-0 record for UFC 283. In fact, he's up over $1,500 on his UFC main-card sports betting picks.
His other highlights include calling an upset for Sean O'Malley (+210) against Aljamain Sterling (-250) at UFC 292 as part of a 4-1 main card and his UFC 299 winners included underdog selections on Dustin Poirier (+190) against Benoit Saint Denis (-230) and Michael Page (+110) against Kevin Holland (-130). Anyone who has followed him at sportsbooks and on betting apps is way up.
Now, Vithlani has studied Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura from every angle and revealed his top betting picks and best bets. You can only see Vithlani's UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura picks at SportsLine.
Pantoja vs. Asakura preview
Pantoja, 34, began his professional career in July 2007 in Brazil and had been so impressive, he caught the eye of the UFC. Prior to joining UFC in January 2017, Pantoja had compiled a 16-2 overall record and won the RFA Flyweight Championship at RFA 18 in December 2014. He then won the inaugural AXS TV Flyweight Superfight Championship with a technical submission victory over Damacio Page in August 2015. He followed that up with a split-decision win over Eric Shelton in his UFC debut at UFC on Fox: Shevchenko vs. Pena on Jan. 28, 2017.
Since that debut, he has gone on to win the UFC Flyweight Championship, successfully defending it twice. He has won Fight of the Night twice and Performance of the Night three times. In 33 career matches, he has compiled a 28-5 mark, with eight wins by knockout, 10 by submission and 10 by decision. He is No. 11 in the UFC men's pound-for-pound rankings. Check out SportsLine to see his picks and analysis.
In the meantime, Asakura, 31, began his pro career in September 2012 in Japan. He previously competed in the Rizin Fighting Federation, where he was a two-time Rizin bantamweight champion. He has also competed for Road Fighting Championship, Fighting Network Rings and DEEP. He is ranked as the No. 25 bantamweight fighter in the world by Fight Matrix. He is coming off a TKO win over Juan Archuleta at Rizin 45 in December 2023.
Asakura, who was the Rizin Bantamweight Grand Prix 2021 runner-up, has compiled a 21-4 record. He has 13 wins by knockout, three by submission and five by decision. He has won five of his last six bouts and seven of nine. He went 8-2 as an amateur. He won his professional debut on Sept. 16, 2012, defeating Tomoya Suzuki by submission at the 2:34 mark of the first round. You can only see his picks and analysis at SportsLine.
UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura predictions
We'll reveal one of Vithlani's UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura selections here: He is backing Cody Durden (+140) to defeat Joshua Van (-165) in a flyweight matchup on the early preliminary card. Durden is coming off a submission win against Matt Schnell in September and has won four of his past six bouts.
"Van is a heavy-handed striker who throws thumping leg kicks and can mix in his wrestling," Vithlani told SportsLine. "At just 23, he is an impressive prospect who is learning on the job. However, I feel Durden's wrestling attack may overwhelm him. Durden sets a furious pace from the opening bell. He can chain together takedowns relentlessly and has recently showed off an improved striking attack. Durden has been finished in all four of his UFC losses, so Van will likely need to put him away to beat him." See more UFC picks at SportsLine.
How to make UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura picks
Vithlani has strong picks for Pantoja vs. Asakura and other bouts on the UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura card. He's also backing a fighter who is a "menacing kickboxer" to earn a massive victory. He's sharing who it is only at SportsLine.
Who wins UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura, and how exactly does the fight end? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed picks and analysis from the incomparable expert who is up over $1,500 on his UFC main-card picks, and find out.
UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura main fight card, odds
See full UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura picks, predictions, best bets here.
Alexandre Pantoja (-270) vs. Kai Asakura (+220)
Shavkat Rakhmonov (-420) vs. Ian Garry (+320)
Ciryl Gane (-400) vs. Alexander Volkov (+310)
Bryce Mitchell (-900) vs. Kron Gracie (+600)
Nate Landwehr (-135) vs. Doo Ho Choi (+115)