LAS VEGAS – Alexandre Pantoja remembers hearing the name Kai Askaura for the first time. It was 2019, and Pantoja (28-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) suddenly was interested to learn more. Asakura (21-4 MMA, 0-0 UFC) had just knocked out Kyoji Horiguchi, a teammate Pantoja holds in the highest regard. “I got more attention about him, ‘Who is this guy, who can beat Kyoji because Kyoji is so good?’ I realized I have a very good fighter to fight,” Pantoja told MMA Junkie and other reporters Wednesday. Fast forward five years later, and Pantoja did a different sort of deep dive in the form of a tape study. Asakura departed RIZIN and entered straight into a title shot vs.