How long can Alexandre Pantoja rule the flyweight division?
The UFC flyweight division has a new king. At UFC 290, Alexandre Pantoja took the flyweight belt off Brandon Moreno in a five-round war that won the pair fight of the night. Now that Pantoja has the belt, it is time to examine how long he can hold the title for.
Pantoja has already passed several tough tests
Pantoja may have just won the belt, but he has already shown the ability to beat some of the best flyweights in the world, beginning with Moreno.
The former champion is one of the best fighters on the planet and has proven to be a tough out. Still, Pantoja has beaten him on three separate occasions. While it is far from a foregone conclusion that he beats Moreno if they run this fight back, Pantoja certainly has the skills to get the job done.
Outside of Moreno, Pantoja sits on wins over Brandon Royval, Alex Perez and Manel Kape. Royval is in the midst of the title conversations, so if Pantoja ends up defending the belt against Royval, he has shown that is a winnable bout. The same could be said for Perez and Kape, even though they have a longer road to the title.
The top contenders
The flyweight division has a few promising names that could work their way to a title fight, with the top available name being Amir Albazi. At UFC Vegas 74, Albazi proved he was an elite flyweight, earning a razor-close decision win over Kai Kara-France.
Albazi could present Pantoja with some challenges, largely because of the former’s grappling. It will be a tough task to find anyone that can grapple with Pantoja, but Albazi is one of the few fighters that could handle the assignment.
Kara-France, a former interim title challenger, will also have a chance in a bout against Pantoja. Kara-France is the most technical striker at the top of the flyweight division. On top of that, he has shown outstanding takedown defense. At a minimum, that presents a fun stylistic clash.
The answer
I am not going to project anything crazy for Pantoja’s title reign. I love a lot of his skills; the sensational grappling paired with his power and chin creates a great fighter.
Still, at 33, it is difficult to project a long-sustained title reign. In the lower-weight classes, it is really tough to defend the title once you hit 35. Plus, at the moment, the flyweight division is great. It is unlikely Pantoja has an easy fight before his time as champion concludes.
Ultimately, I would say the best-case scenario for Pantoja is a title reign that sits around two years. In terms of fights, I’d say four defenses sounds like a proper number. It certainly will not be an easy four defenses, however. If he falls short of that mark, I would not be shocked.
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