Alexandre Pantoja vs Steve Erceg fight announced for UFC 301

UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pantoja is set to defend his title for the second time. His latest opponent will be rising flyweight challenger Steve Erceg, who knocked out Matthew Christopher Schnell in the second round of the fight to register his third straight win in the UFC. “Astroboy” remained undefeated in the UFC with a score of 3-0, and that’s what might be the reason behind giving him the title shot this early, but if that’s the case, then flyweight division fighter Muhammad Mokaev would be a more deserving contender for the title shot than Steve Erceg.

Muhammad Mokaev, who is still undefeated in his MMA career, has registered six wins in the UFC since his debut back in 2022. In his last UFC encounter, he registered a unanimous decision victory over Alex Perez, but still, the UFC went for a contender who is still out of the top 10 flyweight fighters list. Alexandre Pantoja nevertheless is not going to underestimate the challenger and will be ready to defend his title. In fact, at the UFC Fight Pass show Bancada, “The Cannibal” called Steve Erceg a tough opponent, even tougher than his last two opponents, Moreno and Royval, because the challenger hits harder.

“He’s tougher than Royval and Moreno for me, because he comes from down the rankings and he has nothing to lose. He’s ranked No. 10 and is fresh in the division. The thing in my favor is that I’m more experienced in fighting, and that will be used by me in the octagon. I can’t make mistakes or underestimate him because he hits hard.”
Alexandre Pantoja said

Alexandre Pantoja vs. Steve Erceg is going to take place on May 4 at Pantoja’s home; further updates on the remaining fight cards are yet to come.