It appears Deiveson Figueiredo wants to forego a fourth fight with Brandon Moreno in favor of a title bout with Kai Kara-France next.
Kara-France (24-9 MMA, 7-2 UFC) earned a split decision upset of Askar Askarov’s (13-1-1 MMA, 3-1-1 UFC) on Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 33 clash at Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. He’s now on a three-fight winning streak and said afterward that he thinks he deserves the next championship fight in the flyweight division.
“This is the situation I wanted to be in coming off a three-fight win streak, two finishes in the first round and now beating the No. 2 guy in the world,” Kara-France told MMA Junkie at the UFC on ESPN 33 post-fight news conference. “It’s a conversation me, Mick (Maynard) and Dana (White) have to have.”
The UFC is rumored to be targeting a fourth consecutive championship bout between Figueiredo (21-2-1 MMA, 10-2-1 UFC) and Moreno (19-5-2 MMA, 7-2-2 UFC), but after Kara-France’s win, it appears the current titleholder wants something else. Figueiredo took to social media and made it clear he wants Kara-France next (via Twitter):
Congratulations you dirty kiwi @kaikarafrance you just punched your ticket with the God of War. @theassassinbaby you just took the back seat. You are 0- 2 against @Pantojamma if you could beat him I’ll give you the next title shot. Vs
let’s make it happen @danawhite pic.twitter.com/mysuGl9Wsa
— Deiveson (@Daico_Deiveson) March 27, 2022
Congratulations you dirty kiwi @kaikarafrance you just punched your ticket with the God of War. @theassassinbaby you just took the back seat. You are 0- 2 against @Pantojamma if you could beat him I’ll give you the next title shot. Vs
It remains to be seen if the champion’s request alters the UFC’s plans. For now, though, Kara-France will revel in the glory of ending Askarov’s winning streak in a fight very few were picking him to win.
“Everyone was counting me out and calling me the underdog,” Kara-France said. “I’ve had a lot of years in this sport and now you’re starting to see that confidence, and now it’s my time.”
Deiveson Figueiredo accepts ‘dirty Kiwi’ Kai Kara-France’s title shot call after UFC on ESPN 33
