UFC 310: T-Mobile Arena; Las Vegas, Nevada
It took less than ten minutes for the UFC flyweight champion to turn away his latest challenger. Alexandre Pantoja is now riding a seven-fight win streak after defending his title for the third-time. The cannibal ate another opponent by rear-naked choke with Kai Asakura going out 2:05 into round two.
The submission loss, was the first time the debuting Japanese star tasted defeat in that fashion. Now; did going from 135 to 125 affect him? Nothing this week, or even while the fight lasted looked that way. But it can be asked. And there’s something else that many other fighters have dealt with.
Going from the RIZIN ring, to the UFC cage is a difference. The two different “arenas” force a style you can or can’t get away with. The clinch work along the fence here would have been worked differently against ring ropes and space. That’s not saying Asakura didn’t do anything right. His quickness will no doubt cause troubles for many fighters. His knees landed solidly. It’s just he was in there against a champion on a serious roll.
Pantoja is proving that he’s really special. Will he ever be a big draw? Probably not. But as the kids on the street say “he gots skillz”. His scrambling and ground game continues to improve. He only needs a tiny amount of daylight to lock the body up and take the back. Creating those openings sets up a jiu jitsu game that is above average. Add to that he has a major heart.
The Cannibal Eats Another Opponent… But Who’s Next On The Menu?
Brandon Royval was sitting cageside, and wants another crack being ranked number one. However, he’s already lost twice to the champion. Khabib Nurmagomedov has a busy 311 card. And one of his brightest students is ranked eleven. Tagir Ulanbekov is a beast on the ground, and is an outside chance. But if the former lightweight champion wants his students to continue to take over MMA, he could push the powers that be to set up that fight.
With Pantoja getting out of the octagon unscathed he has those options. He decided not to call out anyone presently fighting. And it’s highly unlikely that DEMETRIOUS JOHNSON will unretire to fight him. He said after the fight:
“When the octagon is locked, this is my town, this is my city”‘
That very well may be the case is the division. So could he move up to 135? Sure, and he could probably take out a few guys up there. But claiming a second title is a lot less likely.
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