UFC flyweight Alexandre Pantoja has been unstoppable during his championship reign. After another successful title defense, he’s welcoming his toughest challenge yet.
Alexandre Pantoja secured his seventh straight victory on Saturday night
Pantoja, 34, paraded to the Octagon on Saturday night for the final title fight of the year at UFC 310 in Las Vegas, Nevada. There, he gave a warm welcome to UFC newcomer Kai Asakura, choking him out cold in the second round.
The incumbent champion commanded every aspect of the bout, thwarting the highly-touted Japanese prospect’s elite striking prowess while outclassing his opponent in their grappling exchanges. The Brazilian took Asakura’s back during a second-round scramble, locking in a rear naked choke that put his non-tapping opponent to sleep.
With the win, Pantoja (25-9) secured his seventh straight victory and third successful title defense since capturing the 125-pound strap from Brandon Moreno last year.
Pantoja called out flyweight legend Demetrious Johnson
Pantoja’s four victories in flyweight title fights are the second most of all time. In his post-fight interview, the champion called out the only man with more: Demetrious Johnson.
“He doesn’t fight anymore, he retired this year,” Pantoja said of Johnson. “But, this is something for you Demetrious Johnson. I’m the GOAT here. If you want to prove you’re the GOAT, come back.”
Johnson, 38, is widely regarded as one of the greatest mixed martial artists of all time, if not the greatest. He captured UFC flyweight gold in 2012 and reigned supreme for five years. His 11 title defenses (12 title wins total) are the second most in the promotion’s history.
After he finally surrendered the belt to Henry Cejudo in 2018, the UFC traded Mighty Mouse to ONE Championship in exchange for Ben Askren in one of the worst trades in sports history.
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While Askren got knocked out in record time, Johnson continued adding to his legendary resume. In 2022, he knocked out Adriano Moraes in their championship rematch to capture the ONE flyweight strap. The following year, Mighty Mouse emerged victorious in the pair’s highly-anticipated trilogy fight.
Johnson’s defense over Moraes marked his final fight as he officially announced his retirement in September. He finished with a professional record of 25-4-1, riding off into the sunset as one of the greatest to ever do it.
Johnson doesn’t seem interested in returning to the Octagon
Outside of the cage, Johnson has emerged as a popular media personality and amassed over 800,000 subscribers on YouTube, where he posts training footage, fight breakdowns, and fight interviews.
During a ONE Fight Night – just a day before UFC 310 – Johnson explained that the “YouTube money [is] too good to come back to fight.” Later acknowledging Pantoja’s callout on X, he doubled down that he would rather stick to making videos:
“Guys I got offered 2 million dollars to fight!! I turned it down I don’t care to fight anymore YouTube video dropping soon.”
Pantoja might not get his dream matchup against Mighty Mouse, but the Brazilian has been fighting in a league of his own and will look to continue cementing his legacy against any flyweight the UFC throws at him.
