Dana White-led UFC has been notorious for not handing a bigger portion of their profit to their fighters. This is why the likes of Francis Ngannou have left the company for PFl. But UFC flyweight champion Alexandre Pamtoja has advised young fighters to refrain from doing so.
It is no secret that the UFC houses some of the best MMA talent in the world. Even for fighters in other promotions, the goal is to make it to the UFC. The reason is simple. It has the best competition and gets the most eyes. At the moment, no other organization is even close to the UFC in terms of global reach.
It is because of this very reason that Alexandre Pantoja believes young fighters should not get lured away by money.
The champion sat down for an interview with Ariel Helwani for The MMA Hour on YouTube, and he explained why young fighters should choose the UFC,
“If you need high level of competition you need to fight in the UFC….If I’m that guy, if I’m young, doesn’t matter if the UFC is going to pay me less you know, you can make your money in UFC.”
Ariel Helwani chimed in as well saying the ceiling for superstars in the UFC was much higher than any other organization.
Although other organizations may pay a higher initial salary, a UFC star can potentially earn much more and have a bigger platform to achieve more than just wins in the octagon. The biggest example is Conor McGregor.
UFC made him a household name, gave him a base to build on and build on, and he did. He started a whiskey empire that is now worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
So, in a way, Alexandre Pantoja said made total sense. That said, McGregor has been an exception to the rule. Aspiring to achieve the same of success is a great ambition but it’s a little like betting on lottery tickets. Because statistically speaking, there have been hundreds and hundreds of UFC fighters and so McGregor remains an anomaly.
For Pantoja however, he has reached the pinnacle of the UFC in his division, defending his belt twice as a champion already. However, he now wants to further his legacy by fighting the GOAT.
Alexandre Pantoja & his dream match against Demetrious Johnson
In the same interview with Ariel Helwani, the champion spoke about what his dream fight in the UFC would look like,
“He’s the GOAT, you know? How can I not say that? I think right now, after two title defenses, I can speak a little bit about that….I think that’s a dream for me…I have so much respect for him”
Alexandre Pantoja wants a “dream” fight against Demetrious Johnson
“He’s the GOAT, you know? How can I not say that? I think right now, after two title defenses, I can speak a little bit about that.
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Alexandre Pantoja wants the dream match-up against Demetrious Johnson. After two title defenses, he believes he can talk about it now because he has earned it. However, ‘Mighty Mouse’ is currently the One Championship Flyweight Champion and Dana’s dislike for cross-promotion fights is well known. So, unless Johnson returns, this looks like a pipe dream.
