The fanbase for Kai Kara-France has been rising pretty rapidly as one of the best fighters in the UFC flyweight division! Based out of Auckland, New Zealand, ‘Don’t Blink’ has repeatedly impressed the world of mixed martial arts with his phenomenal striking prowess. And one can’t overlook his skills in grappling. After all, he is a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Needless to say, in order to have such high-grade fighting skills, one needs to train with the best teammates and coaches. 

Today, let’s take a deep dive and learn everything we need to know about Kara-France’s gym and teammates. So, without any further ado, let’s get right into it!

Where does Kai Kara-France train?

Kara-France trains at the City Kickboxing gym in Auckland. It is the gym that is behind the massive success of fighters like Israel Adesanya and Dan Hooker. Under the guidance of coach Eugene Bareman, Kara-France has established himself with a record of 24 wins and 11 losses in his professional mixed martial arts career. But the famous gym in New Zealand wasn’t the first place that the flyweight fighter trained in.

Kara-France took up BJJ at the tender age of 10 and began his journey in the world of martial arts while juggling his academics. But his love for combat sports pushed him to take up martial arts as a career, and he moved to Thailand to train in Muay Thai. His time in Thailand forged his personality and body into that of the best fighters. He garnered all the experience that he could while competing in the Thai circuits before returning to Auckland, where he prepared to enter the Octagon. Joining Bareman’s gym in 2016 was indeed one of the prime decisions that put Kara-France on the MMA map, don’t you think?

The New Zealander has often shown his pride at being able to train alongside Adesanya and Hooker. After all, City Kickboxing was put on the map mostly because of the ‘Stylebender’s sky-rocketing success in MMA. This pride was what he revealed when he appeared on Ariel Helwani’s talk show, ‘The MMA Hour’, back when ‘Izzy’ finally defeated Alex Pereira. ‘Don’t Blink’ said, “It just shows that I’m right there with the best guys, you know?… It just showed that we were right there so… Having a teammate like Izzy who just beat a guy that has beaten him three times just reminds me that it’s possible.”

But what exactly motivated ‘Don’t Blink’? Let’s see what the City Kickboxing coach had to say about it.

Eugene Bareman commends ‘Don’t Blink’ 

Right before Kara-France stepped into the Octagon to fight Brandon Moreno at UFC 277, Bareman appeared in an interview with Combat TV. Therein, the City Kickboxing head coach revealed what motivated ‘Don’t Blink’ to travel to the realm of mixed martial arts.

Bareman said, “I think Kai’s always been a super-talented athlete. I think you get super athletes like him at that weight class. Where does a young, athletic, super-talented boy go when we are in a world where sports are predominantly dominated by giants? … What do you do if you’re a 50/60kg super athlete? … You gravitate to a sport governed by weight divisions.”

Now, ‘Don’t Blink’ is all set to take the fight to Steve Erceg at UFC 305. It is indeed the same card that will feature his teammates. Currently, on a 2-fight losing streak, Kara-France will definitely try his best to achieve a victory.

Do you think training with Adesanya and Hooker can ensure a win for Kara-France at UFC 305? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.