The
Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to Brazil for its next
pay-per-view event.
Headlining UFC
301 is a flyweight title fight between Alexandre
Pantoja and Steve
Erceg. Both men successfully hit 125 pounds at the official
weigh-ins, making the five-round fight official. All other fighters
also made weight for the 14-fight card.
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Pantoja (27-5) is looking to make his second defense of the
flyweight title. After beating Brandon
Moreno via split decision, “The Cannibal” defended the belt
against Brandon
Royval in a unanimous decision effort. Having not lost since a
2020 defeat to Askar
Askarov, the Brazilian brings a five-fight win streak into his
first UFC main event.
Meanwhile, Erceg (12-1) is a surprising title contender as the
Australian only has three prior fights in the promotion. In his UFC
debut, “Astro Boy” defeated David
Dvorak via decision in 2023. Since then, he’s won a decision
over Alessandro
Costa and scored a knockout of Matt
Schnell. The 28-year-old will look to shock the world in his
first major fight inside the promotion.
UFC 301 prelims begin at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT on UFC Fight Pass and
ESPN+ on Saturday. The action continues on ESPN and ESPN+ at 8 p.m.
ET/5 p.m. PT before transitioning to ESPN+ pay-per-view at 10 p.m.
ET/7 p.m. PT.
UFC 301 Weigh-in Results:
Alexandre
Pantoja (125) vs. Steve Erceg
(125)
Jose
Aldo (136) vs. Jonathan
Martinez (136)
Vitor
Petrino (206) vs. Anthony
Smith (205.5)
Michel
Pereira (186) vs. Ihor
Potieria (185)
Caio
Borralho (186) vs. Paul Craig
(185)
Joanderson
Brito (146) vs. Jack Shore
(145.5)
Karolina
Kowalkiewicz (116) vs. Iasmin
Lucindo (116)
Elves
Brener (156) vs. Myktybek
Orolbai (155.5)
William
Gomis (143) vs. Jean Silva
(146)
Drakkar
Klose (156) vs. Joaquim
Silva (155.5)
Jamie
Mullarkey (155) vs. Mauricio
Ruffy (156)
Dione
Barbosa (126) vs. Ernesta
Kareckaite (125.5)
Ismael
Bonfim (156) vs. Vinc Pichel
(156)
Kevin
Borjas (125.5) vs. Alessandro
Costa (125)