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Important SN update for SouthlandKai Kara-France fights for Māori pride at UFC 317 title fight
Connor Scanlon • June 25th, 2025 8:01 pm
Kai “Don’t Blink” Kara-France isn’t walking into UFC 317 just to collect the flyweight belt - he’s stepping into the cage with something much more meaningful on the line.
After violently knocking out Australian Steve Erceg back in August last year, the Kiwi flyweight now prepares to challenge Brazilian beast Alexandre Pantoja for the Undisputed Flyweight Championship this Sunday.
But for Kara-France, the fight isn’t simply about status in the division - it’s about cultural identity and honour.
“Everything I’m doing in combat stuff, I’m bringing culture with me,” he told UFC Australia’s Instagram.
“If I don’t do it, who else is gonna do it?
“There’s no better time now than a Māori athlete putting all the spotlight on me and my culture.
“I’m not chasing a title, I’m chasing mana.”
Mana is a core value in Māori belief which goes beyond recognition. It embodies spiritual strength, dignity, and the legacy one carries. And for Kara-France, fighting for mana means representing a wider community, and his ancestors with every punch thrown.
“My ancestors have already done this,” Kara-France said.
“Being warriors on the battlefield, fighting for their mana, fighting for land.
“I know that I’m not alone in there.
“All my ancestors are behind me, and they’re supporting me.
“So, when I’m walking out, and there’s thousands of people that don’t know me – I’m in enemy territory, it’s hostile.
“I feel at home because I’m not alone.”
When asked about being compared to Mike Tyson, he welcomed the praise but made it clear that his culture is what gives him the one-punch knockout superpower.
“It’s definitely an honour to be in the same sentence or to be brought up as the Mike Tyson of the flyweights,” he told MMA Junkie.
“But I’m the first Kai Kara-France of the flyweight division.
“When DC (Daniel Cormier) asked me how I have all these knockouts on my record… I went off the cuff, just speaking my truth, saying it’s because I’m Māori, and that’s my superpower.
“That’s something I tap into, something that anchors me, fuels me, and allows me to make sense of everything.”
Speaking on his upcoming opponent, Kara-France ensured that he will knock Pantoja out, and deliver New Zealand their second ever UFC belt.
“Nothing but respect to Pantoja, but the way I respect you is by coming for that belt and coming for your head,” Kara-France exclaimed.
“I know he hasn’t been knocked out in the UFC and hasn’t been stopped - I want to be the first one to do that and make history.
“That would be an unreal way to get the belt.”
Sunday’s title fight will be the second time Kara-France and Pantoja meet. Their first clash came in an exhibition fight on The Ultimate Fighter almost a decade ago, where Pantoja’s grappling proved too much, clinching the Brazilian the victory.
But now, Kara-France has grown into a different fighter - one who carries both sharper weapons and deeper purpose.
To get his hand raised, the Kiwi will need to land early with the same knockout power that’s become his trademark. He’ll also have to stay mentally locked in when the fight inevitably hits the mat, and avoid draining himself against a champion known for pushing a relentless 5-round pace.
Kara-France knows the challenge in front of him, but his focus is bigger than belts or rankings.
With the weight of Māori culture on his back and two nations in his corner, he’s entering UFC 317 not just as a contender, but as a symbol.
This isn’t just a title fight. It’s a statement. And when the cage door closes, he plans to make history.
