Brazilian Deiveson Figueiredo has left no doubt who he wants to defend his newly recaptured UFC flyweight championship belt against, immediately throwing down the gauntlet to Kiwi Kai Kara-France.
On Sunday (NZ time), Figueiredo edged a razor-tight decision win over Brandon Moreno at UFC 270 in his third straight encounter against 'The Assassin Baby', avenging his title defeat at UFC 263 in June.
After another breathtaking duel between the pair in Las Vegas, much of the initial post-fight talk centered around the possibility of a fourth fight - this time in Moreno's native Mexico.
At UFC 269 in December, Kara-France put his name in the title picture with a savage first-round knockout of former bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt to claim his most career-defining win to date.
That performance clearly caught Figueiredo's eye, as 'Deus Da Guerra' immediately nominated the City Kickboxing product to be the first contender to challenge for his belt.
"Kai Kara-France, obviously," Figueiredo said, when asked who he had his sights set on.
"I want to knock him out and he knocked out Cody Garbrandt, so that’s the guy I wanted to knock out.
"It's not in my interest to fight Cody any more, so it’s Kai Kara-France."
Kara-France - No.6 in the divisional rankings - is scheduled to face Askar Askarov in the co-main event of the UFC Fight Night in Ohio on March 27, in a bout which now shapes as a legitimate title eliminator.
Third-ranked Russian Askarov, a submission specialist, has yet to be beaten since his UFC debut in 2019. He opened his promotional account with a draw against Moreno, before reeling off three consecutive wins.
"If it's a good fight... we can do it as a kickass pay-per-view in the United States," Figueiredo added. "This is where I fight, this is where I want to make my money."
Kara-France's star has been trending precipitously upwards off the back of two straight 'Performance of the Night'-winning displays and predictably, he quickly accepted Figureido's challenge.
"The Champ has spoken," he wrote in a Twitter post. "Let's get it going.
"Anytime, anywhere, I'm ready."
In UFC 270's main event, Francis Ngannou successfully defended his heavyweight title against Frenchman Cyril Gane.
After a sluggish start, Ngannou showcased his evolving grappling game to swing the momentum and ultimately have his hand raised in a unanimous decision victory.
