Alexandre Pantoja

Van's cleaner boxing and combination work gave him the more consistent offense across the championship rematch. Pantoja repeatedly tried to smother Van and start grappling exchanges, but Van managed the pressure and kept returning to his striking. Van took over the fifth round, hurt Pantoja and scored a late knockdown before the judges awarded him the unanimous decision.

Key moments

• Van's boxing and combination work produced the steadier scoring throughout the rematch.
• Pantoja looked to close distance and smother Van, but could not keep the champion there.
• Van dominated the final round, hurt Pantoja and scored a late knockdown to seal the decision.

Pantoja’s title reign ended almost immediately when Joshua Van caught a kick and the champion landed awkwardly, injuring his left arm. The referee stopped the bout at 0:26 of round one, making Van the flyweight champion.

Key moments

• Van caught Pantoja’s kick in the opening exchange and brought the action down.
• Pantoja landed awkwardly while bracing the fall and immediately showed the arm injury.
• The referee stopped the fight at 0:26 of round one, awarding Van the flyweight title.

Pantoja and Kara-France contested the flyweight title at UFC 317. The championship fight reached the third round. The official result recorded Pantoja's rear-naked-choke submission at 1:55 of round three.

Key moments

• Pantoja and Kara-France contested the flyweight championship.
• The title fight reached the third round.
• The official result recorded Pantoja's rear-naked-choke submission at 1:55 of round three.

Pantoja met Kai Asakura’s debut with sustained pressure, then changed levels in round two, took the back, and finished with a rear-naked choke at 2:05.

Key moments

• Pantoja started aggressively and kept Asakura under pressure through the opening exchanges.
• The champion mixed striking pressure with grappling rather than allowing Asakura to settle into a rhythm.
• Pantoja took Asakura’s back early in round two and forced the technical submission at 2:05.

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Pantoja retained the flyweight title in a close five-round fight with Steve Erceg. He opened aggressively, absorbed clean boxing and elbows in return, and used late grappling control to secure the unanimous decision.

Key moments

• Pantoja rushed forward early and scored a takedown, but Erceg defended, scrambled up, and answered with clean boxing.
• Erceg’s counters and close elbows cut Pantoja and kept the champion from cruising through the middle rounds.
• Pantoja regained control in the closing exchanges and won 48-47, 48-47, and 49-46.

Pantoja controlled his first flyweight title defense against Brandon Royval with repeated takedowns, prolonged top control, and threats from dominant positions. Royval rallied in the fifth round, but Pantoja answered with a late takedown to halt the surge and secure the unanimous decision.

Key moments

• Pantoja repeatedly took Royval down and held him on the canvas for long stretches.
• Pantoja threatened submissions while advancing to dominant grappling positions.
• Royval rallied in the fifth round, but Pantoja answered with a takedown to stop the surge.

Pantoja outlasted Brandon Moreno in a hard five-round title fight at UFC 290, winning a split decision to become UFC flyweight champion.

Key moments

• Pantoja repeatedly looked to bring the fight to the floor while Moreno worked behind cleaner outside boxing.
• A short Pantoja punch dropped Moreno during the early exchanges and forced Moreno to reset.
• Both men completed all five rounds; two judges scored it 48-47 for Pantoja and the third scored it 49-46 for Moreno.

Pantoja overwhelmed Alex Perez in 91 seconds at UFC 277, taking the back almost immediately and finishing with a rear-naked choke.

Key moments

• Pantoja came forward throwing and tripped Perez within the opening seconds.
• He jumped onto Perez’s back and locked a body triangle while Perez tried to stand.
• Pantoja stayed attached and finished the neck crank/rear-naked-choke sequence at 1:31 of round one.

Pantoja weathered Royval's pressure and grappling scrambles before taking him to the canvas, getting his back, and finishing with a rear-naked choke at 1:46 of round two.

Key moments

• Pantoja dragged Royval to the canvas early and worked from top position while attacking the neck.
• Royval threatened with a leg lock, forcing Pantoja to adjust before Pantoja resumed his offensive pressure.
• Pantoja took Royval's back and tightened the rear-naked choke as Royval rolled, forcing the tap at 1:46 of round two.

Pantoja spoiled Manel Kape’s UFC debut with a high-output unanimous decision. Kape landed sharp counters and combinations, but Pantoja’s activity, pressure, and damaging kicks carried the three-round fight.

Key moments

• Pantoja stalked Kape from the opening bell while the debuting fighter hesitated before committing to exchanges.
• Pantoja’s volume and pressure forced Kape to react, even when Kape found the cleaner counters later in the fight.
• Pantoja landed a damaging head kick and won the decision 29-28, 29-28, and 30-27.

Askar Askarov edged Pantoja by unanimous decision in a close grappling-heavy fight. Pantoja attacked submissions early, but Askarov’s repeated wrestling entries and late striking earned all three 29-28 judges’ scores.

Key moments

• Pantoja answered Askarov’s first takedown attempts with a guillotine, armbar, and heel-hook attacks during wild opening scrambles.
• Pantoja reached Askarov’s back and hunted a rear-naked choke, but Askarov survived and kept returning to his wrestling.
• Askarov’s pace put Pantoja on defense in rounds two and three, and his crisper late boxing helped secure the decision.

Pantoja stopped Matt Schnell after four straight wins with a first-round knockout at UFC Busan. Both men exchanged hard from the start, but Pantoja’s heavier shots eventually dropped Schnell for the referee’s intervention at 4:17.

Key moments

• Schnell landed cleanly in the early exchanges, but Pantoja kept marching forward and answered with the more damaging punches.
• In the final minute, Schnell stepped into a series of hard Pantoja shots and fell forward to the canvas.
• Pantoja landed two follow-up punches before the referee stopped the fight at 4:17 of round one.

Deiveson Figueiredo outpointed Pantoja over three rounds at UFC 240. Figueiredo’s varied striking controlled the early fight, and he answered Pantoja’s late rally with a knockdown, elbows, and a takedown to win 30-27 on all three cards.

Key moments

• Figueiredo’s jabs, leg kicks, elbows, and uppercuts marked Pantoja while Pantoja searched for a takedown.
• Pantoja found more success on the feet in round two and finally scored a takedown, but Figueiredo immediately returned to standing.
• Figueiredo scored a late knockdown with ground-and-pound, then added elbows and a takedown in round three to complete the shutout.

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Pantoja built the finish with early striking, was briefly taken down by Reis, then returned to his feet and punished the reset with a straight right. Reis went down and Pantoja followed with enough strikes for the referee to stop the fight at 2:58 of round one.

Key moments

• Pantoja found success with his striking in the opening exchanges.
• Reis briefly took the fight to the mat before Pantoja returned to his feet.
• A straight right dropped Reis, and follow-up strikes forced the stoppage at 2:58 of round one.

Pantoja survived an early submission exchange with Ulka Sasaki, then reversed position and finished the fight with a rear-naked choke at 2:18 of round one.

Key moments

• Pantoja pulled guard and immediately attacked Sasaki with an armbar while Sasaki answered with his own submission pressure.
• Sasaki escaped the armbar and triangle attempts and briefly used top pressure against the fence.
• Pantoja scrambled to Sasaki’s back and secured the rear-naked choke at 2:18 of the opening round.

Pantoja beat Brandon Moreno for a second time with a clear unanimous decision in Chile. He controlled the pace and defended Moreno’s attempts to turn the fight into a grappling contest, earning 30-26, 30-26, and 29-27 scores.

Key moments

• Pantoja set the pace early and kept Moreno from establishing the sustained offense he needed.
• Moreno tried to recover in the final round, but Pantoja defended the takedown attempts and maintained control of the exchanges.
• The judges awarded Pantoja the unanimous decision, giving him a second win over Moreno.

Ortiz survived Pantoja's early back-take and escaped with 34 seconds left in the opening round, even briefly taking Pantoja's back before the horn. Ortiz then used sustained striking and grappling pressure through the final two rounds to earn a unanimous decision.

Key moments

• Pantoja took Ortiz's back in the opening round and threatened to finish from the mat.
• Ortiz escaped with 34 seconds left in round one and briefly took Pantoja's back before the horn.
• Ortiz's striking and grappling pressure wore Pantoja down over rounds two and three, and the judges awarded him the unanimous decision.

Pantoja used a strong striking start and persistent grappling to submit veteran Neil Seery with a rear-naked choke at 2:31 of round three in Glasgow.

Key moments

• Pantoja controlled the opening round with busy striking, landing 53 of 115 significant strikes.
• Seery settled into the fight and answered with veteran pressure in the second round, forcing Pantoja to work rather than coast.
• Pantoja returned to his takedowns and back control in round three, finishing Seery with the rear-naked choke at 2:31.

Shelton scored an early takedown, but Pantoja quickly returned to his feet, answered with his own takedown, and took Shelton's back while hunting a choke. Shelton defended and regained strong positions, then pressured Pantoja against the fence in the second round; Pantoja finished the third with the cleaner striking and won a split decision.

Key moments

• Shelton's early takedown was answered by Pantoja, who returned to his feet, secured a takedown, and took the back.
• Shelton escaped Pantoja's choke attempts and turned the position before the end of the opening round.
• The judges awarded Pantoja the split decision, 29-28, 28-29, 29-28, after a competitive third round.

Pantoja won the RFA-versus-Legacy flyweight superfight by catching Legacy champion Damacio Page in a triangle choke in the closing seconds of round two, claiming the inaugural AXS TV Fights flyweight superfight belt.

Key moments

• The bout matched Pantoja, the RFA flyweight champion, with Page, the Legacy flyweight champion.
• Pantoja created the finishing position late in the second round and locked up the triangle choke.
• Page did not escape before the horn; the referee awarded Pantoja a technical submission and the superfight belt.

Pantoja recovered from a difficult first round against Matt Manzanares to win the RFA flyweight title by technical submission at 2:38 of round two.

Key moments

• Manzanares won the opening striking exchanges and landed an uppercut that briefly put Pantoja in danger.
• Pantoja changed the fight in round two with a takedown, full mount, and an armbar attempt before Manzanares escaped.
• Pantoja took the back and applied the rear-naked choke; Manzanares lost consciousness at 2:38 and the referee stopped the fight.

Pantoja defended the Shooto Brazil flyweight title against Lincoln de Sá Oliveira in a rematch, controlling the pace and winning a unanimous decision after three rounds.

Key moments

• The rematch was contested for Pantoja’s Shooto Brazil flyweight title.
• Pantoja controlled the pace for most of the fight and prevented Lincoln from turning his grappling into a sustained late rally.
• The judges awarded Pantoja the unanimous decision, preserving his title.