Like just about everybody who witnessed UFC 306 at Sphere, flyweight contender Tatsuro Taira marveled at the grand presentation celebrating Mexican Independence Day.
While the show cost over $20 million to produce, UFC CEO Dana White made it his personal mission to put on an unforgettable live event after the $2.3 billion arena featuring massive wraparound LED screens first opened in Las Vegas. Thanks to the UFC’s contract with MGM, White has said that the card as Sphere is a “one and done’ but Taira still holds out hope that one day he could see the UFC put on a show there with a love letter to his home country of Japan.
“That would definitely be a dream, whether that’s a title fight or I’m defending my title,” Taira told MMA Fighting. “Seeing that history of Japanese MMA in the Sphere, presenting that would be my dream.”
Considering how many ties martial arts holds back to Japan, it’s tough to imagine that wouldn’t be a spectacular exploration of history for the UFC to promote.
As much as he would love to see Japanese combat sports get that kind of spotlight, Taira admits he’d do just about anything to get a fight on any UFC card at Sphere.
“It was amazing, Taira said. “The whole event as the night itself was so impressive and amazing. If they come back next year, I definitely want to be on the card.”
First things first, Taira has to take care of his own business on Saturday at UFC Vegas 98 when he faces former title challenger Brandon Royval in the main event.
Despite the fact that nothing has been promised, Taira truly believes a win over an established contender like Royval should probably put him in title contention, especially since reigning UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja still doesn’t have an opponent for his next fight yet.
“Yes, obviously, I’m hoping for the title fight after this,” Taira said. “It will be a good matchup against Pantoja. Of course, focused on this one, get this one and then get Pantoja next.
“First up is this Royval match in October. If I beat him, I’ll be ready to fight any time against the champ.”
Through 16 fights in his career, Taira remains undefeated and he’s currently 6-0 in the UFC with four finishes along the way.
He looks to extend that stream to 17 this weekend and while some fighters shy away from talking about an unblemished record, Taira is proud of his achievement. In fact, Taira hopes to hold unto that undefeated resume all the way through his eventual shot at becoming UFC champion.
“I’m very proud that I’m still undefeated,” Taira said. “Does it give additional pressure? The answer would be yes. But at the same time, that pressure is what brought me here. So I do like the pressure and being undefeated.
“So far I’ve been undefeated but the process is basically one by one. You get this new opponent and you focus on that opponent and keep getting the win. That process has brought me here. Of course if I can get the title shot as an undefeated fighter and get the championship belt the same, it would be a dream of all the fans and fighters, someone to look up to. So I definitely look forward to that.”
When it comes to the Royval fight, Taira was definitely excited when he got the call not only because winning should put him that much closer to the championship but he knows this is the kind of opponent that makes things exciting.
Royval prides himself on being one of the most entertaining fighters on the entire UFC roster and Taira knows that kind of style gives him a lot to work with.
“Royval, I definitely see him as a finisher,” Taira said. “I can see from his fights that he’s always looking for that moment. I think the other thing is his stamina. That’s on the top level of the division.
“I was very excited. Got my last fight against Alex Perez so now I’m here to fight the No. 1 ranked [flyweight]. So I’m very excited. “
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