The once overlooked and undervalued
Ultimate Fighting Championship men’s flyweight division is now
ripe with talent—replete with fierce competitors from the bottom of
the barrel to the top of the heap. Being champion of a division
glutted with hungry, viable contenders comes with its fair share of
pressure. UFC 125-pound king
Alexandre
Pantoja thrives when the odds are stacked against him and
delivers when the pressure is on. A divisional stalwart who was
making stealthy moves since 2017, “The Cannibal” has finally earned
his merited recognition with the regal gold wrapped around his
waist. The champion’s next challenge is being hatched almost 13,500
kilometers away in the Land Down Under, as determined Australian
contender
Steve
Erceg, on an 11-fight win streak, travels to enemy territories
to measure the might of Pantoja’s reign. Ahead of that clash, we
take a look at five defining moments that have shaped the
Brazilian’s journey.
Title Toting Triumphs
Having compiled a solid 14-2 record since turning professional in
July 2007, Pantoja was handed the opportunity to fight for the
Resurrection Fighting Alliance flyweight gold against
Matt
Manzanares. He won the fight via rear-naked submission in the
second round. Following that fight, he took on Legacy FC champ
Damacio
Page for the inaugural AXS TV superfight belt at 125 pounds.
Page at that time was on a three-fight win streak and leveraged
that momentum in the opening frame against Pantoja. He staggered
the Brazilian twice with punches but courted trouble when he
decided to pursue Pantoja’s active guard on the canvas. The Carioca
locked in a deep triangle choke from there walking away with a
technical submission win.
His path was one of slow-burning evolution
Success didn’t come overnight for Pantoja who had to prove himself
over time in the UFC. Having contracted with the Las Vegas-based
promotion after his stint in The Ultimate Fighter: Tournament of
Champions in 2016, the Brazilian had to carve out his place and
establish authority gradually. A split decision win over
Eric
Shelton and a rear-naked submission triumph over
Neil Seery
set the course of his trajectory. The first setback on that course
was lodged at UFC 220 when
Dustin
Ortiz tested the mettle of Pantoja and left the Brazilian
trailing in the residue of a unanimous decision loss. A three-fight
win streak with two finishes signaled the advent of a fresh
challenger in the mix. Yet, a unanimous decision loss against
Deiveson
Figueiredo tempered the surge of “The Cannibal.”
Planting an irrefutable claim for title bid
Following the aforementioned loss against Figueiredo, Pantoja went
on a 1-1 run but returned to action in 2021 as an evolved and
determined competitor. There was a discernible change in his
approach, harnessing volume striking and high output yield to
stifle
Manel Kape
enroute to a 29-28, 29-28 and, 30-27 unanimous decision win.
Pantoja generated two of the best performances of his UFC career
subsequently against
Brandon
Royval and
Alex Perez.
Against Royval, Pantoja battled his opponent’s patented
unpredictability, engaged in exciting scrambles, and high-level
submission attempts, all while swinging with unfeigned ferocity to
hurt each other. In the second frame, Pantoja managed to take
Royval to the ground, persevered till he found the rear naked
choke, and locked it in deep, clocking the finish at the 1:46 mark
of the second round.
Having evidenced mastery in the crucial encounter, the 34-year-old
went on to challenge
Alex Perez at
UFC 277. He burst out of the gates with fervor, suited with purpose
to demolish Perez, swinging to the fences to suffocate his
opponent. From there, he managed to briefly deposit Perez on the
mats, swiftly transitioned to the back, and sunk in a standing neck
crank that denoted that the title shot cannot be denied. Both those
showcases received the “Performance of the Night” honors.
Grinding for Gold, Striving for Legacy
Brandon
Moreno was fresh off the definitive conclusion of his
quadrilogy series with Figueiredo when he took on Pantoja at UFC
290. The challenger proved to be the aggressor, pushing the pace
from the onset in a bid to get Moreno out quickly. They both
scrambled for dominant positions, with Moreno the clear victor of
striking exchanges while Pantoja relied heavily on his grappling
prowess. The Brazilian was seemingly fatigued midway through the
fight but dug deep to initiate grappling exchanges. When the tens
and nines were tallied, it was Pantoja who walked away as the
winner and the freshly minted champion with split-decision scores
of 48-47, 48-47, and 46-49.
His Record in the Division Stands Tall
In 32 professional fights, Pantoja has never been finished once.
Moreover, he occupies the third spot for most wins and most
finishes in divisional history with 11 victories, and six finishes.
Throughout his UFC run, he has amassed five post-fight bonuses and
also holds the fifth-fastest submission win in the bracket.