Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – The octagon made its 40th trip to Brazil on Saturday with UFC 301 in Rio de Janeiro. Although it was far from a stacked lineup in the aftermath of UFC 300 this past month, the home crowd got largely what it wanted when the majority of Brazilian fighters won, including headliner Alexandre Pantoja, who outworked Steve Erceg to a unanimous decision for his second consecutive flyweight title defense.
- Pantoja’s Homecoming: Alexandre Pantoja, the flyweight champion, suffered some heavy damage in the fight, including a brutal cut, but marched forward en route to victory. It was the first time Pantoja fought in front of his hometown fans as a UFC fighter, much less champion, and first time fighting at home in over a decade overall.
- Jose Aldo’s Return: Jose Aldo, the “King of Rio,” also returned and made it a success by outpointing Jonathan Martinez to get back in the win column. Aldo walked away from MMA following a 2022 loss to Merab Dvalishvili, but he had one fight left on his deal and was determined to fight out of his contract for free agency. He did just that in spectacular fashion by thwarting a rising contender who had won six fights in a row heading in.
UFC 301 Main Card Results
- Alexandre Pantoja def. Steve Erceg via unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47)
- Jose Aldo def. Jonathan Martinez via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Anthony Smith def. Vitor Petrino via first-round submission (guillotine choke) at 2:00 of Round 1
- Michel Pereira def. Ihor Potieria via first-round submission (guillotine choke) at 0:54 of Round 1
- Caio Borralho def. Paul Craig via second-round KO (punches) at 2:10 of Round 2
- Joanderson Brito def. Jack Shore via second-round TKO (doctor stoppage) at 3:35 of Round 2
- Iasmin Lucindo def. Karolina Kowalkiewicz via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Myktybek Orolbai def. Elves Brener via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
- Drakkar Klose def. Joaquim Silva via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Mauricio Ruffy def. Jamie Mullarkey via first-round TKO (knee, punches) at 4:42 of Round 1
- Dione Barbosa def. Ernesta Kareckaite via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Ismael Bonfim def. Vinc Pichel via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Alessandro Costa def. Kevin Borjas via second-round TKO (punches) at 1:35 of Round 2
