UFC 310 official weigh-in results: One fighter misses by whopping four pounds

Kai Asakura will join a short list of fighters to compete for a UFC title in their organizational debut when he challenges undisputed men’s flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja in the main event of Saturday’s anticipated UFC 310.

Not only will the Japanese star and former Rizin champion be making his UFC debut, Asakura is returning to the flyweight division and competing in the 125-pound weight class for the first time since the early portion of his fighting career.

The 31-year-old has been competing as a bantamweight at 135 pounds in recent years but successfully made the flyweight championship limit with half a pound to spare on Friday at the UFC Apex during the official weigh-in window. 

The flyweight challenger stepped on the scale Friday at 124.5 pounds just like the defending champ from Brazil, making Saturday's headline championship bout official.

Pantoja described his UFC 310 weight cut as the best of his career and told Sportsnet’s Official UFC 310 Weigh-in Show with Aaron Bronsteter and Aiemann Zahabi it shows his maturity at this stage of his career ahead of his fourth UFC title fight.

Asakura is a knockout artist and Pantoja said, “I think my grappling is an advantage,” so perhaps the main event ends up turning into a more traditional striker vs. grappler style matchup.

Co-main event competitors Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Machado Garry both weighed 171 pounds ahead of their five-round title eliminator matchup.

The pair of rising welterweight contenders are a combined 33-0 in professional mixed martial arts which is the most combined wins in a matchup between two unbeaten fighters in UFC history. 

In the ceremonial weigh-ins, the two fighters had an intense staredown, pressed foreheads against one another aggressively and had to be separated. 

Former middleweight champion Chris Weidman had his dream of fighting at Madison Square Garden in his home state dashed last month ahead of UFC 309 when Eryk Anders was forced to withdraw at the last minute due to food poisoning. The bout was rescheduled for UFC 310 at a 195-pound catchweight and both Weidman and Anders came in under the limit.

It was not smooth sailing for all fighters scheduled to compete on the card, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Bryan Battle missed weight by four pounds ahead of his scheduled welterweight contest on the preliminary card against Randy Brown.

Battle lost his battle with the scale and weighed 175 pounds, while Brown came in at an even 171, which is the limit for non-title welterweight bouts.

Brown expressed his disappointment in Battle’s weight miss during an appearance on Sportsnet's weigh-in show. Brown has competed in 18 career UFC contests since 2016 and has never missed weight, despite being one of the bigger welterweights on the roster standing six-foot-three.

The 34-year-old has won seven of his past eight fights and is looking for his third win of 2024, while Battle, 30, is looking to extend his unbeaten streak to five consecutive fights.

This was not Battle’s first career weight miss. He missed weight ahead of his knockout win over Gabriel Green in May 2023.

Anthony Smith also missed weight on his initial attempt, weighing a pound-and-a-half over the non-title light-heavyweight limit of 206 pounds, however, Smith was able to shed an additional two pounds before the deadline expired.

His opponent, fellow former light-heavyweight title challenger Dominick Reyes, made weight on his first attempt as Reyes looks to finish the year 2-0. 

Official UFC 310: Pantoja vs. Asakura weigh-in results and projected bout order:

MAIN CARD

-- Alexandre Pantoja (124.5) vs. Kai Asakura (124.5)

-- Shavkat Rakhmonov (171) vs. Ian Machado Garry (171)

-- Ciryl Gane (245) vs. Alexander Volkov (254)

-- Bryce Mitchell (146) vs. Kron Gracie (144.5)

-- Nate Landwehr (145.5) vs. Choi Doo-ho (146)

PRELIMINARY CARD

-- Anthony Smith (205.5) vs. Dominick Reyes (205)

-- Vicente Luque (170.5) vs. Themba Gorimbo (171)

-- Movsar Evloev (145.5) vs. Aljamain Sterling (145.5)

-- Randy Brown (171) vs. Bryan Battle (175)*

-- Chris Weidman (194.5) vs. Eryk Anders (193)

-- Cody Durden (126) vs. Joshua Van (126)

-- Michael Chiesa (170.5) vs. Max Griffin (170)

-- Clay Guida (155) vs. Chase Hooper (155.5)

-- Lukasz Brzeski (234) vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu (236.5)

*Fighter missed weight