MMA Preview – Kai Kara-France vs Amir Albazi at UFC on ESPN 46
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KAI-KARA FRANCE VS AMIR ALBAZI FACTS
When is UFC on ESPN 46? Sunday 4th June, 2023 - 00:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC on ESPN 46? UFC APEX, Enterprise, Nevada (US)
Where can I get tickets for UFC on ESPN 46? Click here to buy tickets for UFC Fight Night
What channel is UFC on ESPN 46 on? BT Sport 1
Where can I stream UFC on ESPN 46? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
KAI-KARA FRANCE VS AMIR ALBAZI LOWDOWN
An injury to Jack Hermansson has led to Kai Kara-France (24-10(1)) headlining his first UFC card. He has not fought in nearly a year after Brandon Moreno (2022) folded him with a piercing body kick and then went on to reclaim the flyweight strap. The Mexican snapped his brilliant run consisting of knockouts over Rogerio Bontorin (2021) and Cody Garbrandt (2021) as well as handing Askar Askarov his first loss which was via decision.
Amir Albazi (16-1) also headlines his first UFC card as he surges into his prime. He kicked off his UFC campaign with a submission over Malcolm Gordon (2020) and followed that up with a unanimous decision over Zhalgas Zhumagulov (2021) and another submission over Francisco Figueiredo (2022). Now, he is coming off his first knockout since 2015 which was hand delivered to Alessandro Costa (2022).
KAI-KARA FRANCE VS AMIR ALBAZI PREDICTION
Albazi gets the match-up he deserves and their styles make this a very exciting clash. They are both potent finishers and size up similarly physically. Kara-France relies more on his striking to get the job done and Albazi his grappling.
Albazi will be eyeing up Kara-France’s loss column which include three submissions. That said, the Kiwi has excellent takedown defence so Albazi will need to gain his respect on the feet first.
Kara-France is a better striker and packs more power, but Albazi is also a superb striker and continues to improve. He will begin by cracking out his jab, but Kara-France will welcome any offence on the feet as he will have the confidence of countering and knocking him out.
So, Albazi needs to use his striking to get the fight to the floor or at least be persistent in trying to chain takedowns together.
We expect Albazi to get the fight to the ground eventually, but he will struggle to keep Kara-France down. In between, we expect the Kiwi to win the striking exchanges and either convince the judges or secure a late knockout.
Prediction: Kara-France via Decision
