Alexandre Pantoja delivered an incredible performance in his victory against newcomer Kai Asakura at UFC 310 , which took place last Saturday (7) at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, USA. The flyweight champion (up to 56,7kg) managed to lock in a rear-naked choke on his opponent in the second round and defeated the Japanese fighter who had never been submitted in his career. It was the Brazilian's third title defense, having already defended the title against Brandon Royval and Steve Erceg.
With a solid career in the UFC, there's a lot of talk about 'how big is Alexandre Pantoja ?' At the post-event press conference for UFC 310 , reporter Velber Viana from SUPER LUTAS , who covered UFC 310 on-site, posed the question to the champion.
See too
“It’s difficult to talk about this in a country that has so many legends like Anderson Silva , Jose Aldo , Minotauro, Shogun… I could talk all day. I think it’s a job for the fans, to defend what is ours. It’s very important to have this representative, like Poatan, for example. His story is incredible. You see everything he’s been through, and when you see him in the fight, it seems easy. What we go through to get here in this country, where people are ahead of us, had an advantage, and when we get here we try to go head-to-head and try to show that we are better, superior. It’s very important for me to achieve this victory, for me it’s a divine gift to be here representing Brazil. Our people work very hard for this, arriving in a first-world country coming from many hardships. I barely finished school, I learned to speak English by watching movies, I never studied English. And to arrive in a country like this and do what we do, we deserve a lot of respect,” Pantoja replied.
The Brazilian fighter steamrolled past almost all the fighters in the category. Faced with this, Velber asked if there were still opponents for Alexandre Pantoja and was surprised by an emotional response.
Alexandre Pantoja submitted Kai Asakura at UFC 310. Photo: Reproduction X UFC
“I’m very down to earth, my next opponent will always be the toughest of my life, I always look ahead that way and I think that’s how we should face each other, you know? It’s an honor to defend the Brazilian flag, it’s a great source of pride. It makes me emotional to talk about Brazil, where I come from, because it’s very difficult where I came from. Going back to Pitangueiras, to Arraial do Cabo, where I came from, it’s a very long road. I had a lot of people helping me, two guys who are there, Ed and Joinha, they saw me back there, they brought me. It was through them that I entered the US, I fought for the FRG, I was champion, I was also champion of AXS TV Fights. They were two people who helped me a lot at that time [….] I think it’s ‘us for us’. There are a lot of people I want to give back to, I want to give back, a lot of people who helped me”, concluded Pantoja.
At the end of the press conference, Velber was moved by Pantoja's story of overcoming and couldn't help but cry.
“As the champion said, it’s ‘us for us’. There’s no way a Brazilian can hear that in person and not get emotional. Excuse me,” said the SUPER LUTAS reporter live. (see video above)
With his victory over Kai Asakura at UFC 310 , Alexandre Pantoja now has a record of 29 wins and five losses. The last time the Brazilian lost was in July 2020, against the Russian Askar Askarov.
Alexandre Pantoja at the post- UFC 310 press conference / Reproduction Super Lutas
UFC 310 coverage is sponsored by BK8
Bigger and More Reliable, BK8 is the official sponsor of UFC 310 coverage . Official partner of Premier League clubs like Burnley and Aston Villa. BK8 is a sports betting platform that offers a welcome bonus of 100% up to R$500 and a risk-free first bet.
Visit the website , check the terms and conditions, make your first deposit using PIX , and take advantage of the risk-free betting promotion.
Johnny Walker opens up about his heavyweight debut at UFC 332.
You need to log in to comment.