Latest news with #TatsuroTaira
Forbes
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
UFC Announces First Seven Fights For UFC Vegas 108 Fight Card
EDMONTON, ALBERTA - NOVEMBER 02: Amir Albazi of Iraq prepares to face Brandon Moreno of Mexico in a ... More flyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at Rogers Place on November 02, 2024 in Edmonton, Alberta. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC) Two highly-ranked flyweights headline the UFC Vegas 108 fight card, which takes place on August 2 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas. In that matchup, Amir Albazi and Tatsuro Taira look to bounce back from the first losses of their UFC careers. In addition to Albazi vs. Taira, the UFC has announced six other fights for the upcoming UFC Fight Night event. UFC Vegas 108 marks the first UFC fight card at the Apex since UFC Vegas 107 on May 31. Amir Albazi vs. Tatsuro Taira - Flyweight Karol Rosa vs. Nora Cornolle - Women's Bantamweight Nick Klein vs. Andrey Pulyaev - Middleweight Rodolfo Vieira vs. Tresean Gore - Middleweight Andre Lima vs. Felipe Burns - Flyweight Piera Rodriguez vs. Ketlen Souza - Strawweight Azamat Bekoev vs. Torrez Finney - Middleweight Saturday, August 2, 2025 UFC Apex in Las Vegas, NV Prelims: 4:00 p.m. ET Main Card: 6:00 p.m. ET ESPN and ESPN+ LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 03: Amir Albazi of Iraq is introduced by Bruce Buffer prior to his ... More flyweight bout against Kai Kara-France of New Zealand during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on June 03, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images) Amir Albazi (17-2) enters UFC Vegas 108 as the No. 3 fighter in the UFC's flyweight division. Albazi made his UFC debut as a short-notice replacement in a bantamweight scrap against Malcolm Gordon in July 2020. Albazi won that matchup via submission. He then dropped to flyweight for his next outing, a January 2021 decision win over Zhalgas Zhumagulov. Wins over Francisco Figueiredo, Alessandro Costa, and Kai Kara-France followed, which earned him a February booking opposite former UFC flyweight champ Brandon Moreno. Albazi was forced from that card due to a neck injury. At the time, Albazi wrote on Twitter, 'I'm out of the fight against Moreno 24th of February. I have been dealing with a serious neck injury the past weeks. After some scans the UFC doctors decided to pull me out of the fight immediately. I want to apologize to the fans and the UFC. I will be back inshallah.' A healthy Albazi finally got his shot at Moreno in November 2024 in a main event matchup in Edmonton. Moreno won that contest via unanimous decision, handing Albazi his first loss since April 2019 when he was with Brave CF. LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 12: Tatsuro Taira of Japan prepares to face Brandon Royval in a ... More flyweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on October 12, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC) Taira (16-1) has risen up the UFC flyweight ranks fairly quickly. He joined the UFC in May 2022 with a record of 10-0, and after winning the Shooto flyweight title. Taira opened his UFC career with a unanimous decision win over Carlos Candelario in May 2022. He followed that with back-to-back submission wins in contests where he earned 'Performance of the Night' bonuses, defeating C.J. Vergara and Jesús Santos Aguilar. Wins over Edgar Chairez and Carlos Hernandez in 2023 followed. In June, Taira got the first true test of his UFC career when he faced Alex Perez in a main event on a UFC Fight Night card at the Apex. At the time, Taira was the No. 13 ranked fighter in the UFC's flyweight division, and Perez, who had fought Deiveson Figueiredo for the UFC 125-pound title in 2020, was ranked No. 5. Taira won that bout via TKO due to a knee injury. The fight ended when Taira took the back of his opponent in the center of the Octagon and forced him to the mat, putting enormous pressure on Perez's knee and causing an injury that brought the fight to a halt in the second stanza. From all appearances, and judging from his comments after the victory, the move that finished the contest was a designed technique. In October, the 25-year-old Taira faced former UFC flyweight title challenger Brandon Royval in the main event of a UFC Fight Night at the Apex in Las Vegas. The fight was a close one, but Royval earned the split decision win, handing Taira the first loss of his MMA career. Taira is the No. 5 ranked UFC flyweight. We will have more on the UFC Nashville fight card as information becomes available.
USA Today
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
MMA Junkie Radio #3570: Interviews with Jon Anik, Tatsuro Taira, and latest news
MMA Junkie Radio #3570: Interviews with Jon Anik, Tatsuro Taira, and latest news Thursday's episode of MMA Junkie Radio with "Gorgeous" George and "Goze" is here. Thursday's episode of MMA Junkie Radio with "Gorgeous" George and "Goze" is here. On Episode 3,570, the fellas welcome in two fantastic guests from the UFC world: lead commentator Jon Anik and flyweight contender Tatsuro Taira. The guys also discuss this weekend's UFC on ESPN 68 card going down at the UFC Apex and other latest news in the world of MMA. Tune in!
USA Today
29-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
UFC's Tatsuro Taira 'looking forward again' after shock of first career loss
UFC's Tatsuro Taira 'looking forward again' after shock of first career loss Tatsuro Taira was hard on himself after suffering the first loss of his UFC and professional career. After going unbeaten in his first 16 fights, including a finish over former title challenger Alex Perez, Taira (16-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) lost a split decision to Brandon Royval in the UFC Fight Night 244 headliner last October. Although he earned his fourth-career UFC bonus, Taira didn't take the loss too well. "It was a tough, five-round fight," Taira told MMA Junkie Radio through an interpreter. "I was only thinking about winning the fight and going next to the title fight. So, I was very shocked, I was depressed, but now I'm just looking forward again, and I'm only looking to get that title shot soon." The 25-year-old Japanese fighter will look to rebound when he takes on Amir Albazi (17-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) in a UFC Fight Night main event on Aug. 2 from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. "He's physically very, very strong," Taira said of Albazi. "But I think I can imagine myself either getting a submission on the ground or getting a win by knockout." Taira isn't sure about title implications with a win over Albazi but sees the fight as a must-win situation. "I'm coming off a loss, he's also coming off a loss, so ranking wise it's (No.) 5 vs. 3, and we're both in a jeopardy position, and we both cannot lose this fight," Taira said. "I won't necessarily think the next fight will be a title fight, but a big fight for both of us (and) definitely cannot lose."
