The men’s flyweight title has changed hands frequently in the post-Demetrious Johnson era, and although “Mighty Mouse” last fought in the UFC in 2018, the flyweight GOAT remains a fixture atop the division’s record book.
Alexandre Pantoja has only been champion for roughly 10 months yet the Brazilian can already become the first men’s 125-pound champion to make consecutive title defences since Johnson when he faces Australia’s Steve Erceg in Saturday’s main event at UFC 301.
Henry Cejudo, Deiveson Figueiredo nor Brandon Moreno were able to defend the belt twice consecutively – Figueiredo was champ for more than two bouts in a row but he retained the title one time thanks to a draw with Moreno.
Pantoja is also closing in on several of Johnson’s UFC records.
One of them is for most submission wins in men’s flyweight history. Johnson holds the record with five, while the reigning titleholder is currently tied for second place with Muhammad Mokaev with four submission victories.
Erceg, 28, has never been submitted or finished during his 12-1 pro MMA career and half of his wins have been via submission so tying Johnson in that category at UFC 301 would be quite the feather in Pantoja’s cap.
Pantoja’s two most recent submission wins in the UFC came against Brandon Royval in 2021 and Alex Perez in 2022; he has gone the distance in his last two fights in his championship victory over Moreno in July and his first defence was against Royval in December.
A submission or knockout would be Pantoja’s seventh stoppage victory at 125 pounds, which would tie him with both Johnson and Figueiredo for most flyweight finishes.
A win of any kind would pull Pantoja, 34, to within one of the division’s all-time co-leaders. Johnson and his former rival, Joseph Benavidez, both ended their UFC tenures with 13 flyweight wins. Pantoja sits in third place with 11.
“I hope he comes with everything because I’m ready to make a big show and I’m ready to win,” Pantoja told Sportsnet’s Aaron Bronsteter earlier this week.
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The champ is one of 14 Brazilians scheduled to compete at the event – one in each bout – as the UFC returns to Rio de Janeiro for the 12th time and first since UFC 283 last January.
“Brazilians want first place. Brazilians don’t like second place,” Pantoja added.
Can Petrino, Borralho pass similar litmus tests?
Vitor Petrino and Caio Borralho are the two biggest betting favourites at UFC 301 ahead of their fights with Anthony Smith and Paul Craig, respectively, and both matchups are similar in several ways.
Both are undefeated at the UFC level – Petrino 4-0 and Borralho 5-0 – after stoppage wins on Dana White’s Contender Series earned them a UFC contract. Their opponents are more tenured, have fought at a higher level of completion for longer and each hold multiple wins over UFC champions. Smith and Craig have also struggled to stay in the win column of late. Both have lost three of their past four and were finished in their most recent appearance.
Oddsmakers are expecting Petrino and Borralho to get their hands raised at Farmasi Arena and, based on where Smith is ranked at light-heavyweight (currently No. 10) and where Paul sits at middleweight (no. 12), both Brazilians can begin to eyeball their respective divisions’ top-10s going forward.
Will middleweight suit Potieria as much as it has Pereira?
This main card middleweight matchup is flying under the radar and could deliver some sparks with both Michel Pereira and Ihor Potieria prone to shenanigans and fun finishes. Potieria is sticking around at 185 pounds after coming down from the 205-pound division. He won his middleweight debut in February, ruining Robert Bryczek’s UFC debut in the process and a win over Pereira would be a solid statement. Pereira, meanwhile, is looking to extend his winning streak to eight in a row overall and three straight at 185. The Brazilian has looked outstanding since moving up from welterweight.
One is coming down from 205 and one up from 170. Which one will perform better once they meet in the middle? Also, this is the second consecutive matchup Potieria has accepted on short notice with Pereira originally slated to face Makhmud Muradov.
