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- What: UFC 317 Co-Main Event
- Who: Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Kara-France
- Date: Saturday, June 28, 2025
- Location: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV
- Time: Early Prelims (6:00 p.m ET), Prelims (8:00 p.m. ET), Pay-Per-View Card (10:00 p.m. ET)
- How to Watch: Early Prelims (ESPN+) Prelims (ESPN+), Main Card (ESPN+ PPV)
The highlight of the UFC’s 2025 edition of International Fight Week is the UFC 317 pay-per-view card, which takes place on June 28 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In the main event of UFC 317, Ilia Topuria and Charles Oliveira battle for the vacant UFC lightweight title. A second title fight serves as the UFC 317 co-main event. In that contest, UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja faces the No. 4 ranked 125-pound contender Kai Kara-France.
Alexandre Pantoja (29-5) is riding a seven-fight winning streak. Pantoja won the UFC flyweight belt in 2023. He has defended his crown three times, with his most recent win being a December 2024 submission win over Kai Asakura.
Kai Kara-France (25-11-0-1) is coming off an August 2024 knockout win over Erceg. He fought Brandon Moreno for the interim flyweight belt in July 2022, losing via TKO. Kara-France followed that with a June 2023 split-decision loss to Amir Albazi.
Before we look at the best bets for Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Kara-France on the UFC 317 PPV card, check out the best UFC betting sites and where you can find our betting picks for the UFC 317 main event.
UFC 317 Co-Main Event: Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Kara-France betting picks
| To WIn UFC 317 Co-Main Event |  |  |  |
| Alexandre Pantoja | -235 | -245 | -256 |
| Kai Kara-France | +200 | +205 | +202 |
UFC 317 Co-Main Event: Alexandre Pantoja betting breakdown
It took Alexandre Pantoja some time to find his footing in the UFC. He went 6-3 in his first nine fights with the promotion, but since then he has gone 7-0 with four decision wins and three submission victories. Pantoja has some of the best cardio in the UFC. He sets a fast pace from the fight’s opening and can keep fighting at that level for a full 25 minutes. Along with his pace, Pantoja relies on his pressure. He pushes forward and likes to get his opponent fighting off his back foot. Pantoja has power in his strikes and is comfortable on the feet, but his goal is to use his striking ability to get the fight to the mat. The champ is a high-level grappler who uses his pressure and ground strikes to set up his submission attempts.
Pantoja dominated Steve Erceg in May 2024 racking up more than eight minutes of control time while going nine for 19 in takedown attempts. He followed that by shutting down Kai Asakura in their late 2024 meeting, limiting the challenger to 17 landed significant strikes (vs. 32 for Pantoja) while going three-for-seven in takedowns before ending the bout via submission in the second stanza.
Pantoja averages 4.41 significant strikes per minute, with an accuracy of 50 percent. His striking defense is 50 percent, and he gets hit 3.92 times per minute. Pantoja actively looks for takedowns, averaging 2.74 takedowns per 15 minutes with a success rate of 47 percent. Pantoja’s takedown defense is 68 percent.
UFC 317 Co-Main Event: Kai Kara-France betting breakdown
Kai Kara-France started his run with the UFC in December 2018. In his first nine fights with the promotion, he went 7-2 with two knockout wins and five decision victories. In July 2022, while on a three-fight winning streak, he faced Brandon Moreno for the interim UFC flyweight title. Moreno won that bout by TKO in the third round. Kara-France followed that setback with a June 2023 decision loss to Amir Albazi. He was set to face Manel Kape in September 2023, but the 31-year-old pulled out of that contest after suffering a concussion in training camp. When he was healthy, Kara-France returned to the cage in August 2024, knocking out Steve Erceg in the first round.
Kara-France is a talented flyweight with a lot of skills. The New Zealander is mostly a kickboxer. He has a lot of power for a flyweight, and he puts out his fair share of volume. He has good technical skills, and he is equally adept at fighting in close and at range. While his striking is strong, Kara-France can struggle on the mat. While he defended eight of Albazi’s takedown attempts during their five-round matchup, the one time Albazi got the fight to the ground, he picked up 3:36 of control time during that five-minute round. Kara-France must be perfect with his takedown defense against Pantoja.
Kara-France lands 4.56 significant strikes per minute with an accuracy of 39 percent. He absorbs 3.22 strikes per minute, and his striking defense is 65 percent. Kara-France lands 0.61 takedowns per 15 minutes of action with an accuracy of 33 percent. His takedown defense is 88 percent.
Best Bets: UFC 317 Co-Main Event – Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Kara-France
These two fought in an exhibition match in 2016 during The Ultimate Fighter, with Pantoja winning that two-round affair by decision. I would not put much stock in that matchup for either man, as both fighters have improved since then.
This bout will come down to who can impose their will. If Kara-France can keep the fight in the open and land strikes while avoiding takedowns, he has a chance to pull off an upset win. On the other side of the cage, if Pantoja can shore up his striking defense and find openings for his takedowns when Kara-France over throws or tires, he will be able to get the fight to the mat and dominate on the ground.
The betting pick is for Alexandre Pantoja to win a decision over Kai Kara-France in the co-main event of UFC 317.
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