Alexandre Pantoja emerged victorious in his second title defense at UFC 301 just hours ago. Fuelled by his home crowd, Pantoja dug deep to secure a unanimous decision win after going toe-to-toe against Steve Erceg in what was an extremely close fight. With the win secured, how much did Pantoja make for his efforts?
Alexandre Pantoja headlined a PPV card for the first time in his UFC career this weekend. Needless to say, that came with massive financial gain for the champion as he got awarded with PPV points. According to reports, Pantoja was the highest-paid athlete on the card and made an impressive $750,000 for his efforts. Close second in the order was Jose Aldo who made $550,000.
The $750,000 purse for Pantoja does not include the cut he will get from the PPV sales of the event. It is safe to assume that Pantoja could earn in excess of $1 million for his efforts against Erceg. According to reports, Pantoja had also earned $1.1 million for his first title defense against Brandon Royval at UFC 296 towards the tail end of last year. But who is next on Pantoja’s radar?
During the UFC 301 post-fight interview, Pantoja stated that he had been extremely active over the past few years and therefore was going to take a break from the sport. But that doesn’t mean his peers can rest easy, because he ensured everyone understood that when he returned, he was coming for everyone and heads would roll.
But that’s getting too ahead of ourselves. So, let’s take a look at what transpired earlier today when Pantoja and Erceg squared off in the middle of the octagon.
A closer look at Alexandre Pantoja vs Steve Erceg
The fight started well for the challenger who seemed to be the better on his feet. He caught Pantoja a few times, lunging forward recklessly. However, the shots were not powerful enough for him to put Pantoja away.
As time passed, Pantoja gained composure and over the course of the fight, Pantoja landed nine takedowns. That wasn’t it either. He also outclassed Erceg with the sheer number of strikes; 143 compared to Erceg’s 129.
Pantoja also landed 125 significant strikes compared to 111 by his opponent. Needless to say, the judges’ decision was unanimous in his favor. So congratulations to Pantoja on the win, and taking home a mount in the ballpark of a million dollars.
